Watching Future Mistakes
by Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh
Summary: Just before Stoick returns from the search, all of Berk minus Mildew, and all the Nest minus the Red Death, are brought in a room to watch the movie of past and future, and how the war will end. With lots of twists and turns. Movie 1.
1. A Kidnapping

**_Hello and welcome to my second HTTYD story! Now, this is a watching the movie, but I will not use the movie's script. Instead, I will write it like a story, describing what happens in the movie. Which means it's gonna be much longer and better-detailed than the script, but some side sentences less important might not be written as I do not hear them in my file._**

**_Oh, and good read._**

The axe came free from the tree with yet another sound of splintering wood.

Astrid Hofferson didn't mind it as she turned, imagining herself in a battle with a Deadly Nadder as she rolled on the ground to 'dodge its fire' before raising the axe to plant it into the skull of the imaginary dragon. Her hand, however, was stayed by the sight before her, which was very much not a dragon.

Hiccup Horrendous Haddock the Third stared back at her with more than a little fear in his eyes… only part of which seemed to be directed at the cocked axe she still held in her hand, ready to be thrown.

Her eyes were drawn by what he was holding in his arms… whatever it was. She could admit it to herself that frankly, she had no idea. And if it was another of the boy's inventions, then she probably wouldn't know even if she were to examine it closely.

After a second of silence between the two, Hiccup grimaced as if she'd caught him doing something he shouldn't have been doing -like following her- and sneaked off into the forest. Frowning, Astrid made to follow him…

However, the dark red Terrible Terror that suddenly flapped in front of her face seemed to think otherwise. Irritated and not having time for the pest, and that tiny dragon could really be called just pests, she swatted it aside with her axe and-

And then she felt herself fall, with the forest ground sweeping upwards as if she were falling into a bottomless pit. At the top, she could barely see the pesky beast looking down at her before everything went dark.

/- _Still in Berk's forests_ -/

An encounter with Astrid was hard on a normal day. Hiccup would've really preferred not finding out how much worse it would be on a bad day. The fact she hadn't made any move to stick her axe into his skull was definitely good news. However, the fact she hadn't even _lowered_ her axe didn't really bode well with his health.

Suddenly, he heard a small squawk behind him and turned, expecting to see Astrid chasing some Terrible Terror or something. Instead, what he saw was the girl hitting one with the flat of her axe as she still stared at where Hiccup had walked off, and then…

His eyes widened to the size of dinner plates when the girl suddenly just… _fell…_ through the ground. As if she'd been standing over a hole the whole time and the Gods just hadn't noticed. He ran forwards, dropping the saddle and new tail he had for Toothless, to try and at least grab her hand, but when he got near the place she'd fallen into, he found out the hole had been larger than he'd thought.

Hiccup had never been good with balance. Sure, he could run and do crazy stuff all the time, but his clumsiness was one of the reasons why he was such a disgrace of a Viking. Putting a foot on thin air and expecting it to hold? Yeah, not one of his proudest moments. In his defence, he had thought to be stepping on the ground.

As the second teenager disappeared into the ground, the Terrible Terror squawked again, confused by the sudden turn of the events, before he too was sucked into the ground with an outraged shriek.

/- _Somewhere between Helheim's Gate and Berk_ -/

Stoick the Vast was having a bad day. No, a bad few weeks, to be honest. _'One more search, before the ice sets in.'_ How foolishly optimistic his words had been. For three hundreds years the Vikings had searched for the Nest, and never found it.

Oh, they knew it was somewhere inside the fog bank in Helheim's Gate. However, between the jagged rocks and sea stacks, and the giant fire-breathing flying reptiles that guarded it, it was all but impossible for any ship to get through.

He just hoped Gobber, back on Berk, had a little more success than him, because he really, _really_ needed some good news at the moment.

Unfortunately, good news he did not get. What he did get, though, was for him and all his men to just… _fall…_ through the ship and into darkness, screaming all the way.

/- _At the Dragon's Nest_ -/

The dragons at the Nest had seen many, many things in their lifetimes, but watching as the ground apparently sucked all of them in, one by one, was something they had yet to see. Even the Red Death, the titanic monster they all dreaded, seemed confused to no end. She knew she couldn't fight the ground, no matter how much she might be inclined to.

How could the earth even eat her servants?

She never got the answer as a warhammer was big as her head came crashing down on her skull as soon as all her servants were gone, sending her into la-la-land for quite a while before it too disappeared.

/- _Somewhere else in the Multiverse_ -/

Vikings were not people who liked being dropped, especially not onto one another and especially not when they had no idea where they were or what had just happened. This of course lead to everyone arming themselves as soon as they were free from the pile – and Stoick even handed Hiccup his own axe when he saw he was without any kind of weapon, ignoring the fact the boy didn't even know how to hold an axe properly. Still, knowing his son had a weapon in his arms made him feel a lot better.

The group took their time looking around, but all they gathered from their inspection was that the large room they were kept in was without doors, and the walls looked really solid – knocking on them also helped them realize it. The room was also completely empty.

The crowd began to murmur, but before it could escalate too much, another person fell through the ceiling and face-planted into the floor, groaning slightly in pain after a second of stillness.

Stoick approached the form warily. "Are you… okay?"

Without bother to get up or even raise his head from the floor, the man raised a hand with all fingers closed but the thumb. "I'm just peachy… but gimme a second to remember who I am again. Might've hit the ground harder than I thought I would…" he mumbled, the voice muffled by the floor.

After another second, the man groaned again and stood up. He was taller than most teenagers, but shorter than most adult Vikings, and was dressed in leather pants and shirt with a fur jacket over it, a pretty typical outfit for a Viking. He had a sword on his left side and a hatchet on his right one, both hanging from his belt. His hair was in theme with the brown leather, being a dark brown themselves, but as opposite to most Vikings, he seemed to keep his beard short instead of letting it grow. Kinda like Spitelout, to be honest. His eyes, instead, were a mix between light brown and light green. He was also missing a helmet of any kind, which made him look shorter than he was. Speaking of his height, he was just slightly taller than the twins, but shorter than Fishlegs, and his built was halfway between Hiccup's and Snotlout's. Oh, and his hair also had a Viking braid not unlike Astrid woven with it, though shorter than hers.

He also appeared to be in his early twenties, but his voice both confirmed and denied that claim. It was as deep as Stoick's… while being just slightly less nasal than Hiccup's. A mix of mature and childish.

"Ugh, feeling others' pain is such a pain sometimes," he grunted unhappily, stretching to soothe the pain in his back. Then he sighed in relief and turned to look at them. "Okay then. Chieftain Stoick, may I ask you if all of Berk is present?"

Stoick, confused by the question and the situation as a whole but also wanting to check on his people, quickly looked around. The room was roughly four or more times the piazza, and a quarter as tall as it was wide – which still made for an impressive height. All of the village was comfortably contained in there without any kind of problem about space whatsoever. It didn't take too long for the Chief to quickly count everyone before turning to the odd Viking. "Yes, all of Berk is here. But where _is_ here, exactly?"

The man smacked his forehead in frustration. "Oh Thor how could've forgotten my manners. I'm very sorry. Let me explain." He removed his hand from his face and bowed slightly. "My name is Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh. In a way, I am the one who brought you here by the will of a power out of this world."

Murmurs started to spread through the crowd, but Stoick silenced them all by raising a hand, before glaring down at the -admittedly much- shorter man. "What do you mean, you brought us all here?"

He shrugged. "An entity not of this world used their divine power to bring you all here. I am merely a physical representation of that entity. Kind of like your Gods and their trips to Midgard, but from another world that is not Midgard nor Asgard."

Stoick was silent for a few seconds. While he did not want to believe it, the mere fact they were there and not back on Berk was clear proof that _something_ had brought them in that room, and if it could bring them there, it very possibly could've killed them by dropping them from a very high point.

Seizing his occasion, the newly named Khor continued. "As for why you are here… please try to contain yourselves for this one… I've brought you here to show you your past and future."

As opposite to what he'd asked, the hall erupted in murmurs and gossips as people chatted and discussed his statement. Once again it was Stoick who brought it all to a halt. "Our future, you say?"

The man nodded. "Yup. It won't be _far_ future, but it'll be future nonetheless. A very important future that will end the war between Vikings and Dragons…"

This time, not even Stoick could stop the whispers, as he too had been struck by the words. Had any other man said something as absurd as that, he would've laughed at his face. However, this man, this… _Khor_, had just somehow moved all of them from Berk and nearby to the unknown location they were all kept in. That man had a lot of power, maybe one akin to a God's. And in the end, he could not see why the man would be lying to them.

In a corner, Hiccup looked up from where he had been staring at the ground and stared at the man, shocked. Would that regard him and Toothless…?

"…but in a way _none_, and I repeat _none_, of you could've ever imagined," he finished darkly, effectively killing all the whispers. "And this war will have heroes like all wars… the main one is already in this room – and you all know him."

Snotlout puffed out his chest in pride before Astrid slammed her elbow into his stomach, making him double over in pain and wheeze out a gasp of pain. The twins snickered at his predicament while his father just shook his head. That boy…

As soon as he got over the pain -and put some distance between him and Astrid-, Snotlout was back on track. "It's gonna be me," he boasted arrogantly.

"Actually…"

"Me!"

"No, seriously…"

"It's me!"

"Listen…" By then a few Vikings had started to snicker at Khor's inability to shut the teen up. That seemed to irritate him enough to growl, "_Will you just shut up?!_"

The twins winced and rubbed their ears while Snotlout finally stopped. "Ugh, what's his deal?" groaned Ruffnut. "No idea, maybe he's deaf and he's trying to hear himself," Tuffnut replied. As usual, no one listened to the idiots.

Khor took a breath and exhaled slowly. "No, it's not you, Snotlout. You'll find out soon enough who they are. Now, I'll have to warn you: since the war regards the Dragons too, I'm gonna have to bring them here." Immediately, roars of protest rose from the crowd. "Yeah, I can see how little you like that idea. Still, it has to be done. If it makes you feel better, no fighting is allowed in the room unless it's fully deserved judging by what you do in this room."

Most of the Vikings blinked, so Fishlegs dumbed it down for them. "He means that we can only hurt those who do something bad _here_, even if they raided us in the past."

Khor was quick to continue before the crowd could roar again. "Of course this goes for them as well!" he exclaimed, calming them down just marginally. "And another thing, I made everyone in this room immortal, or rather just unable to die. This will include the Dragons though. And one last thing, since Norse gives me a headache and Dragonese is hard to transliterate, you and the Dragons will all speak English automatically."

As the Vikings wondered what an 'inglish' even was, Fishlegs gasped in excitement. "Wait, you mean that Dragons can speak?!" he squealed.

"Course they can, just in Dragonese," shrugged the man. "All animals can communicate with other members of their species. Dragons are just one huge species with lots of different subspecies. Anyway, I will drop them in now. Grab your weapons if you want, but please do not use them."

True to his words, a multicoloured mass of wings, claws and scales fell from the ceiling and slammed into the floor. Of course, there weren't _all_ the Dragons of the nest, or the room wouldn't be large enough to contain them, but they were more than the usual number of dragons in the raids. The ones from Dragon Training were also there, squawking and warbling and cooing at the others, relieved to see them again.

Hiccup held his breath as his eyes scoured the mass of reptiles, seeking out the familiar white-green of a certain catlike Night Fury. Eventually he found the dragon, who had likewise been looking for him while absent-mindedly warbling and crooning to answer the question of the dragons around. Both green-eyed friends visibly relaxed as they found each other's eyes.

Hiccup could almost ignore the fact that every single Viking was gripping their weapons so hard their knuckles were trying to go whiter than white.

Almost.

Khor, instead, could ignore it completely, as he rubbed his hands together as if to warm them. "Okay, now that everyone's here, I'm gonna cast some magic around and you all speak English – which, for your information, is a language." A small yellow crystal appeared in his hands and glowed briefly before shattering and disappearing, much to Snotlout's dismay as he had been eyeing it. "Here. Now, you should all be able to understand each other."

"Where are we?" asked a Monstrous Nightmare, looking around, ignoring the Vikings' strangled exclamations of surprise.

"Ah, right, I didn't explain it to you." Khor bit his lip for a second. "I poofed you here to watch your future, more specifically the end of the Viking-Dragon war. Only, in a way none of you predicted."

The Dragons seemed to reach the 'acceptance' stage far more quickly than the humans. Weird. Aside the odd comment and whisper, they just settled down without problems. Khor felt kinda insulted. He thought dragons had more fire than that.

"Okay, now, one more thing before we begin with the viewing, it's _how_ we are gonna see the future and past and whatever," Khor explained for what was hopefully the last time before the start. "See that wall? It will act like a window, allowing us to see through past and future, even though we will be invisible to those on the other side. Don't ask me exactly how it works, I only know it's called a giant TV and what it does, not how."

"How could you not know?" asked Gobber, confused. "It's your doing!"

Everyone but Khor and the Dragons was shocked by Gobber's perfect grammar. Khor smirked. Magic could do a lot of things… "Well, Gobber, you use wood for your weapon's handles, but do you know how a tree grows for you to have that wood?"

The man shook his head with a noise of denial.

"Exactly. Same goes for me." Khor shrugged. "Anyway, food will be available whenever you want. Just think of the food you want and it will appear. Before you ask, Chieftain Stoick, no you cannot use it to stock up your storehouses for the winter, I am sorry."

Stoick sighed, having had that very question on the tip of his tongue, while most Vikings and Dragons alike began to ask for tons of food to appear – and not to store it.

"And now, without further ado… let's watch, the past!"

**_Before writing this I read all, and I mean ALL, the 'watching the movie' HTTYD fanfictions on this site. Around 150. Took me couple of weeks. I can say for sure that this is original, as are all the reactions. But I can also tell you, this is a pain in the ass for me to write because it's gonna be a hand-written movie script. Handwritten by me._**

**_Now, the reactions of the people will probably be, for the majority of them, vastly different from the usual ones. I'll explain why I made certain choices as I go, in the end AN. So if you're interested in knowing why somethings are in a certain why, it'll be explained._**

**_Also, the movie is described with my brand of humour and sarcasm - expect a lot of jokes and sarcasm, because I'm worse than Hiccup, if that is even possible. Though it will be loyal to the movie itself._**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**


	2. Seduced on the Spot

**_GUEST REVIEW RESPONSE: only this time. June, first review of this story, guest review. While time consuming, I wrote 30k words in two days, for a total of three and a half chapters, so I shouldn't be too shabby. As for them realizing how they've treated Hiccup, it will happen, but only after they see how they have pushed him on the dragons' side with their harshness. Oh, also, to find all the reaction stories I used the FFN search engine with 'watch movie', then narrowed the search to HTTYD. 162 results total.  
_**

"Wait wait wait!" Fishlegs immediately interrupted before the TV could even start. "What's 'ado'?"

Khor blinked at him. "I… am not sure myself. It means let's talk no longer and just watch this thing," he replied flatly.

Everyone just nodded or shrugged. Even the dumbest ones were silent because of their curiosity – while Mildew just hadn't been taken from Berk and was in la-la-land via the same way as the Red Death – warhammer to the head.

**Della musica di sottofondo inizia a suonare mentre lo schermo mostra un'enorme sfera grigia…**

"Whoops, wrong language," Khor winced before waving his hands a bit at the wall. "Sorry 'bout that, I forgot about it."

Again, most just shrugged even if the teens smirked a bit at his mishap.

**The Moon gradually fades away from the left until only a crescent remained, revealing an ethereal azure boy fishing among the stars.**

"What's that boy doing there?!" Stoick shouted, jumping to his feet, scared for the boy – after all, they couldn't even _see_ the ground, it could've been way up in the air!

"Oh, don't worry, the past only starts when you start to hear a narrator's voice," explained Khor. "The start and end will have a narrator, kinda like a story, but it won't last long."

"So… you're saying this is not the past," asked Mulch, confused, "but then what is it?"

"It's something called a logo, but don't worry, that's not a real person, just moving images… like drawings," shrugged the man. _'This is never gonna end if they continue to ask questions…'_ he inwardly groaned.

**The boy swings his fishing rod to toss the bait, but he only disperses the clouds below him. As the sky clears, the shadow of a sleek, black dragon darts from the right side of the screen, fading out of view as it passed under the Moon.**

"What was that?" asked Snotlout, having noticed it first. Hiccup smirked, thinking he recognized the shape.

"Oh, you'll see."

**Suddenly, giant letters slide into view, forming the words DreamWorks Animation SKG, as a different music begins to play. Suddenly, the image is deformed as if it were reflected on the water. A second later, this proves correct as the view moves to show a vast, dark ocean before looking up to see fog surrounding an island that looks like a giant spike of rock jutting out of the sea.**

"Hey, that's Berk!" exclaimed Bucket, never the brightest, as people rolled their eyes. As the guy from the gods had said, they would be watching their pasts, so it made sense for the wall to show Berk. They also ignored those weird words that had been written in the clouds, as they made absolutely no sense.

"Yeah, but how comes the water doesn't come _out_ of the wall?" asked Tuffnut, even less bright that Bucket, earning himself a punch from his sister.

_**"This… is Berk."**_

And just like that, most people jumped out of their skin at hearing Hiccup talk. The main startle was from the fact that his voice had been vastly amplified and obviously came from the pictures. The boy himself was gobsmacked.

"Wait… Hiccup is the narrator?" asked Astrid, the first to figure it out.

Snotlout laughed. "Ha, good one babe, as if Useless would ever be important enough for his voice to be heard! I, instead, am a Viking worth praising… and marrying," he added, directing that last bit towards Astrid, who groaned as her lunch almost chose the quick way out of her stomach.

"Too bad, you're not the one who's talking," Ruffnut jeered at him, laughing alongside her brother. "Surpassed by Useless, haha!"

"Hey, I don't hear _your _voice from the wall!" Snotlout angrily retorted before smiling oily at Astrid. "Yours hasn't been heard because you're too good for that thing, of course, I mean who would ever show Useless and you speaking one after the other?"

"Shut up," she glared at him, not having liked the experience of near-vomit.

_**"It's twelve days North of hopeless, and a few degrees South of freezing to death. It's located solidly on the Meridian of Misery."**_

"Wow, such nice words, Useless," Snotlout scowled at Hiccup. A few other Vikings, including his father, scowled as well, but most just chuckled. Berk was indeed a harsh place to live in – but that harshness was what shaped them into such great warriors! It was a land of fight or die, and they had all survived!

"He's not wrong," Stoick shrugged slightly.

"Of course you would say that," laughed Gobber, sitting beside him on the floor. "I remember you calling it a 'shitty, frozen mountain of dragon dung dropped from the Gods in the arsehole of the world', when you were still in your teenage years."

This time all Vikings laughed at the blacksmith's joke as the Chief sighed defeatedly, knowing he couldn't stop his friends from embarrassing him on that one. After all, he _had_ said that.

"Wait, if it's so horrible for you, then why don't you just leave?" a Deadly Nadder spoke up, confused by the controversial actions. They insulted their home, yet stayed?

The Vikings immediately stopped laughing as they were reminded that the dragons were watching with them. Being the most comfortable of the bunch around dragons, Hiccup spoke up. "Well, our ancestors sailed here to find a home since our original lands were no longer fit for us. They founded Berk and it's our home… despite all the harsh climate and everything. And after three hundreds years, it's hard to just up and abandon our home, no matter how hard life here is."

Some Vikings nod in agreement. While that was just the shortened explanation, Hiccup had put it well.

Snotlout, however, disagreed. "We didn't leave because we're not afraid of stupid reptiles, and we'll always win against you!" His words drew some cheers from the Vikings, but a lot of deadpans from the dragons.

"Is he really so stupid he says 'winning' when they are barely hanging on by sheer stubbornness?" a Gronckle whispered to another, who gave the draconic version of a shrug.

**The view passes through the fog to show Berk, in all its unassuming, miserable glory. Great stone statues guard the outer edge of the docks, each with fire in its open mouth, before a spray of water changes the screen to an aerial view of Berk, sliding over houses and farms.**

Most Vikings were in awe. That view from above was spectacular. They'd never seen Berk from such an angle – how could they? They didn't know how to fly. Some wished they could, though, because that view was breathtaking even at night, and even if Berk didn't look all that much.

Hiccup smiled. While he had never flown over Berk itself, the views he'd gotten during his flights with Toothless were wonderful – even if they all ended with both of them eating dirt after falling.

Which reminded him of the new tail, he really hoped it would work.

"Is this how you see Berk?" an awed Fishlegs asked, turning to glance at the dragons. No Viking scolded him for speaking to their enemies, for that was a question they all wanted to know.

The Gronckle from before nodded. "Yeah. Sometimes even from higher, though we never really saw the village much from the ground, since… you know…"

They did. But that didn't stop the pangs of envy from finding their way in the hearts of almost all Vikings. Devils or not, the dragons were sure lucky to have such a privilege.

_**"My village. In a word… Sturdy. And it's been here for seven generations, but every single building is new."**_

The dragons looked really sheepish at that. They all knew whose fault that was. Well, theirs, the twins' and Hiccup's, but still mostly theirs. Though, on the bright side, it helped them keep their carpenter skills sharp: every single Viking on Berk above the age of ten knew how to repair a house, and most even how to build one.

The Vikings, however, are just too awestruck by the view to point that out. A few of them pointed out their houses in the bunch of buildings shown, and a few recognized their sheep. Dragons were really lucky to have such a view…

Hiccup smiled. Who knew, maybe one day he would be able to stay airborne with Toothless for more than ten consecutive minutes. Then he would be able to see all that, cloaked in the darkness of the night, and even more. He couldn't wait.

If someone noticed his eager grin, they probably didn't mind it, as more or less every Viking was staring at the screen in wonder.

**The view pans up to show most of the village until it slows down when a catapult slides into view, connected to the rest of the village with a massive wooden bridge.**

Now it was the dragons' turn to be impressed. "Damn, makes me feel sorry for destroying it," commented a Monstrous Nightmare. "Look at that stuff! It's so complex!"

A Hideous Zippleback glanced at Gobber, who they knew usually worked in that building full of weapons, and quickly assumed he was some kind of weaponmaker. Grimacing, she decided to ask Stoick himself instead. "Chieftain Stoick, how can you make such complex buildings? Isn't it hard to keep all of that in mind all the time?" the left head asked, impressed, while the right one snorted at her sibling's interest.

Taken aback by the compliment, from one of the devils nonetheless, Stoick found himself frowning. "Why would you care?" he spat venomously. "All you do is destroy everything!"

The dragons winced at the reminder. Yeah, they did…

"Ha, Useless there destroys more than anything else!" Snotlout laughed obnoxiously, only to fall silent when literally no one laughed alongside him. The twins were even giving him the stink eye.

"No way!" exclaimed Tuffnut.

"We are the most destructive things on Berk!" Ruffnut added.

The Thornston parents sighed and shook their heads. All Thornstons were kind of gone in the head, but one had to be excellently stupid to take pride in destroying their own village when there were dragons that did it every once in a while.

"We first draw the houses on paper," Hiccup decided to answer the dragon's question. "We add as many details as we can so we don't have to remember it, then we build the house keeping an eye on the paper, so to build it like we want it."

Again, the dragons were impressed. "Clever, very clever," muttered a Deadly Nadder. "We should've thought of this too! We've been living here for far more than the Vikings, yet our home is just a hole in a mountain! We should really build these 'houses' as well!"

Stoick was about to demand them to tell him where the Nest was, hearing them talk about it, but then he thought better of it – it wouldn't change anything either way, and they probably wouldn't even answer.

_**"We have fishing, hunting, and a charming view of the sunsets."**_

Snotlout snorted in derision at the last one, but glared at by Fishlegs, surprisingly showing some backbone for once. "He's right," the fat boy stated fervently. "We do have beautiful sunsets."

"Aye," echoed across the Viking side of the hall. All of them had, at least once in their lives, sat down and just admired the setting sun. It was really a sight to behold – and one they had over the dragons, too!

**The view snaps to a few sheep munching on the grass.**

_**"The only problem are the pests."**_

**As soon as the word 'pest' ends, a Deadly Nadder snatches one of the sheep right off the grass. The other looks up, unimpressed, and quietly moves to take the now free spot, munching on the other sheep's grass.**

While the Vikings sighed at how their sheep couldn't even act terrified and run for cover instead of standing there like perfect targets, the dragons laughed heartily at the animal. Never staying still for too long, none of them had ever seen how the other sheep reacted to one being caught. Now they knew, and their laughter made it clear what they thought of it.

Stoick ran a hand over his face. "Stupid animals," he groaned, for once not directing the insult to the dragons. "Never know when it's time to flee…"

_**"You see, most places have mice, or mosquitoes. We have…"**_

**As the narrator speaks, the view changes again, moving to the door of a house being opened. The sight that welcomes the unknown houseowner is that of a Monstrous Nightmare chasing a few people before noticing the open door, and breathing a blast of sticky fire at it, forcing the unlucky owner of said door to shut it quickly.**

**As the fire hits the door, the mysterious figure is revealed to be a scrawny Viking teenager with short auburn hair and green eyes – who like all other Vikings seem to be pretty under-reacting to seeing giant fire-breathing reptiles raiding his village.**

"Wow, you have the worst luck ever," commented Tuffnut, snickering alongside his sister.

"That's for sure!" said another Viking. "I remember that raid, I was one of the people running there! There was only one Monstrous Nightmare… who seemed to chase Hiccup around for a while!"

Three of the teens -no surprises who- laughed meanly at that, but Hiccup just shrugged. "Well, only the best Vikings fight those, maybe he was looking for a worthy opponent?" he replied sarcastically, causing most Vikings to laugh at the joke while Snotlout howled in laughter… at him.

"Hahaha, Useless, fighting a dragon? Not until Dragon Training!" he shouted. All the respect he might've once had for Hiccup due to his success in Dragon Training had all but evaporated. This was due to the fact that despite all evidence, Snotlout wasn't a complete imbecile, and he had already figured out who the 'hero' was – the only one who had gotten the honour of introducing Berk. And that didn't sit well with him… so he just planned on making fun of Hiccup for as long as he could, before people started to defend him.

Unfortunately for him, it didn't really work. Astrid punched his shoulder, hard, with a scowl on her face. "Weren't you the one who was all over him just yesterday?" she snarled at him. Not that she wasn't happy he'd stopped hanging around her, but still… even if she barely interacted with them, the gang was all the friends she had. Without them, she was completely alone, and that didn't sit well with her.

She did feel a bit guilty, knowing that was how Hiccup felt most of the time. Though he had Gobber, while she barely ever saw anyone outside of the teens, since her parents were often busy.

**"Dragons," the boy breathes, eyes wide at the near-death experience.**

**Outside, the dragons are trying to grab as much food as they while fighting off the Vikings who jump at them, sometimes quite literally, like the one who was halfway in a Gronckle's mouth and still hammering it with his mace while another jumps and grabs the sheep a Deadly Nadder had just snatched.**

_**"Most people would leave. Not us. We have… stubbornness issues."**_

The words, paired with the image of that Viking smashing the Gronckle's head until it let go, cracked up a few Vikings and most dragons. Stubborn indeed they were. The Vikings were proud of it, the dragons… annoyed by it.

Gobber laughed outright. "Aye, and you don't, lad?"

"Who ever said I don't?" Hiccup shot back with a grin. "I'm the most stubborn of them all!"

"That much is sure…" Stoick mumbled under his breath.

Meanwhile, the teens were having different reactions. Fishlegs was worried for the people, Astrid hoped that one day she could be as skilled as those warriors, and the twins were cheering for all the violence.

**The boy runs out of the house, whose front wall is now blackened by the fire, and into the fray, with a strangely cheerful smile on his face.**

"What are you smiling about, lad?" Gobber inquired, amused.

"No idea," shrugged the boy. "Honestly, why not? Better being cheerful than all moody, right?"

His mentor just shrugged while his father frowned, re-evaluating his life choices, specifically the one about not smiling unless necessary to keep a reputation of being serious and severe.

"He's obviously smiling at all that beautiful destruction!" Tuffnut exclaimed, jumping up to gesture at the screen with both hands. "Isn't it wonderful?"

Everyone rolled their eyes.

_**"My name's Hiccup. Great name, I know, but… it's not the worst. Parents believe a hideous name will frighten off gnomes, and trolls."**_

**As he speaks, the newly introduced as Hiccup weaves through the battlefield, startled as a Viking falls from the sky alongside his axe – which alone is as big as Hiccup himself. He runs under a log carried by two Vikings just before a third one somehow receives the middle of the log in the back of the head and goes down.**

People laughed at the man's misfortune while he just sighed and rubbed his skull. He _still_ didn't know how that log had moved enough to the side to hit him. And he probably never would.

The dragons snickered as well. It seemed like they weren't the only ones to knock Vikings out, after all.

**Hiccup turns with an expression that's a cross between an 'oh Thor they got hurt' and 'whoops, don't look at me, I didn't do that' as Vikings shove past him.**

Many laughed again while others just smiled. Hiccup didn't know that, but he was freaking adorable sometimes. Of course they couldn't exactly just tell him that, but most of them thought it. Stoick smiled gently. His son might not be a fighter, but his sarcasm and facial expressions were incredible, especially since most Vikings only had 'scowl' and 'scowl that looks like a smile' in their range of expressions.

The dragons cooed at him. The hatchling was funny.

Hiccup sighed. "And that's what I get for looking away…" he groaned, earning weird looks from the others.

_**"Like our charming Viking demeanour wouldn't do that…"**_

**Suddenly, a Gronckle spits fire at a Viking, sending him flying into Hiccup, knocking him to the ground. The Viking roars at his face before recognizing him and cheerfully greeting him, then runs off to fight.**

The dragons roared in laughter at him, while the Vikings chuckled. It wasn't that hard to be mistaken. Especially since most Vikings were big, fell from the sky at times, and wore horned helmets, they could easily be mistaken for dragons in the heat of a battle. Still, the man's cheerful 'morning!' had been pretty funny.

Said man grinned. "Morning!" he shouted over to Hiccup, who grinned back.

"Just dropping by, I guess?" he replied, which earned more laughters. Hiccup relaxed. Without any battle to worry about, he suddenly loved living with his people a lot more.

**Recovering from the fall and the surprise that came with it, Hiccup runs through the village, dodging people almost twice his height, more than five times his width, and over six times his weight. Said people, upon noticing him, make sure to point out what they thought of him being outside.**

**"What are you doing here?"**

**"Get inside!"**

**"What are you doing out?"**

**"Get back inside!"**

"I think once was enough, thanks," snorted Hiccup, to which said four people just shrugged.

"Well, in our defence, you didn't seem to be 'going back inside'," said the only woman of the four.

"The house was on fire, though," a Deadly Nadder pointed out.

"During a raid, it doesn't matter what house you are in, if you are seeking shelter, you are welcome in anyone's house," replied Stoick, resigning himself to having to speak with the dragons.

"Well, in _my_ defence, I was going to the forge," rebutted Hiccup, to which Gobber nodded.

**Hiccup bypasses a man who is merely picking his ear. As he looks back at him in bewilderment, finding it difficult to believe a Viking in the middle of a battle would do that, he almost steps in the line of fire of a Deadly Nadder as it torches the ground.**

**"Hiccup!" He is however saved by a giant of a man, who easily holds him up with just one hand. As he continues speaking, the man points at Hiccup with exasperation. "What is he doing out aga- What are you doing out?! Get inside!" Ignoring Hiccup's wince, he shoves the boy out of the way.**

A few dragons were surprised by the man's roughness with the boy, but he seemed fine, so maybe he was hardier than he looked – honestly, he looked like he'd break if one of those fat Vikings even breathed too hard in his direction.

The Vikings didn't even blink. During a battle, there was little time for gentleness.

**Proud music begins to play as Hiccup introduces the man, voice full of awe.**

_**"That's Stoick the Vast, Chief of the Tribe."**_

**The gigantic, red-haired man looks at the skies with a fierce yet intelligent expression. Spotting a Deadly Nadder, possibly the same one as before, he grabs an overturned cart and throws it through the air, hitting the dragon and making it lose height, even though it did not fall.**

The teens were in pure awe at the sight. Not even all of their strength combined would be enough to hurl a cart strong enough to shatter it against a dragon, and definitely not for such a distance. Stoick chuckled at their faces, alongside a few other Vikings.

The dragons stared, impressed. That particular Viking was immense, and insanely strong! A few of them remembered encountering the huge Chief, and winced. No common dragon could get the better of that one – he punched Monstrous Nightmares like they were nothing! Of all the dragons in the Nest, only the Night Fury and the Red Death could get the better of him. And neither liked being seen or engaging in direct battle.

_**"They say that when he was a baby, he popped a dragon's head clean off its shoulders. Do I believe it?"**_**His voice is very matter-of-fact. ****_"Yes I do."_**

The dragons shudder. That was definitely something they could see that man doing. The Vikings nodded in respect, and Hiccup knew all too well that that story was indeed true – though Stoick had been a little older than a baby, he had been the leader of the fire brigade at the time.

**Turning away from the sky, the huge Viking looks at another one, who is almost cowering compared to the first's proud stance. "What have we got?"**

**"Gronckles, Nadders, Zipplebacks. Oh, and Hoark saw a Monstrous Nightmare," replied the man, definitely shorter than the Chief but still fierce and tough.**

"And we all know where that Monstrous Nightmare went," snipped Snotlout, causing a few laughters.

"Unfortunately," grumbled Stoick, remembering the damage.

**An explosion rocks the ground, making all Vikings but Stoick hide under their shields. The Chief brushes a piece of flaming wreckage from his iron shoulderpad. "Any Night Furies?"**

**"None so far."**

**"Good…" Even Stoick sounds relieved to know that.**

In the midst of dragons, Toothless held in a snicker. He knew the Vikings hated him most of all dragons. It would be a pity to stop the wall-thing just because they wanted to try and kill him because he made himself known.

"I guess the Chief jinxed it…" muttered Astrid, earning a couple of snickers from the teens, among which Hiccup.

_'Well, if so, I really have to thank Dad for allowing me to meet Toothless!'_ he snickered in his head. He still hadn't realized that apparently the screen followed _him_, which meant they would see him befriending the Night Fury instead of killing him.

**"Hoist the torches!" a random Viking calls out as gigantic braziers held by wooden poles rise into the sky, illuminating it enough for everyone to see dozens of swirling****dragons of all colours flying****around.**

**Hiccup is seen running across the screen until he reaches an open building, taking off his fur vest without even stopping. A fat, blonde-moustached Viking with a huge hammer instead of his left hand greets him sarcastically. "Ah, nice of you to join the party. I thought you'd been carried off."**

"You wish, Gobber, you're not getting rid of me that easily," snorted Hiccup. His mentor was like that. Every raid, _every single raid_, he would crack a joke about that. Sometimes he thought that was the only joke about raids he had ever come up with.

"Aye, that's good to hear… I need someone to keep the forge clean!" retorted Gobber, earning a few snickers as well.

**"Who, me? Nah, come on!" Hiccup replies sarcastically as he lifts another one of the man's prosthetics, a mace, and places it on the correct spot on the wall. "I'm waaay too muscular for their tastes. They wouldn't know what to do with all… this," he continues, clenching his fists and flexing his arms mockingly.**

Everyone, every single living being in the entire hall, burst into laughter at that. Some of it was mean, some of it wasn't, but there wasn't a single entity, be it Viking or dragon, who didn't at least chuckle at the scene.

"Useless, having muscles! Ha! Don't make me laugh!" sneered Snotlout, being the meanest of them all.

Gobber raise an eyebrow at him. "Oi, don't go insulting my apprentice, Snotnose! He's been working with hammers and swords ever since he was four… he's way stronger than he looks! Just look at how he lifted without straining a mace that was basically bigger than he was!"

"Aye, that thing must've weighted a hundred pounds," nodded Mulch. "It was pretty big."

"Well, you can lift it with one hand no problems," Snotlout protested, to which a few adults laughed, while Astrid face-palmed.

"That's because Gobber is the second strongest Viking in the entirety of Berk, moron," she informed him, exasperated. "And he also has thirty-something more years than Hiccup, which kind of makes the comparison pointless."

Hiccup blinked. Had Astrid just defended him? He discreetly pinched himself. Nope, not a dream…

**"They need toothpicks, don't they?" the man shot back without missing a beat.**

"Yeah, but theoretically _after_ eating, not _while_ eating," snorted Hiccup.

"Why would we eat a human?" a beige Gronckle asked, disgusted. "They're much harder to kill than sheep or fish, are usually armoured, and since you never bathe you don't even taste decent!"

"You… ate a human before?" asked Fishlegs, a bit scared.

The dragon nodded towards Gobber. "His leg. Worst mistake of my life."

Everyone looked at the blacksmith, expecting him to be angry at the dragon for having eaten his foot. Instead… "Oi, who are you calling smelly?!"

**While the blacksmith exchanged his hammer for a couples of tongs, Hiccup pushes open the doors of the stall and grab a bunch of weapons from a couple of burly warriors, one redhead and the other dirty blond. Awkwardly carrying four or five weapons about as big as he was, Hiccup then drops them on the burning coals before heating them up.**

_**"The meathead with interchangeable hands is Gobber. I've been his apprentice ever since I was little. Well… littler."**_

"Aye, you started messing around in my forge around four or five, if I remember correctly," nodded Gobber, agreeing with Hiccup's onscreen statement before smirking. "Though you weren't my apprentice back then. Took you until eight to become one."

"Not my fault if you insisted 'I don't need an apprentice, I can do everything on my ow-ARGH!'," snickered Hiccup, pretending his back hurt, causing Gobber to glare at him and a few others to chuckle.

Seriously, who thought Vikings could actually laugh that much when they weren't always on the brink of war? Apparently watching past and future to see how the war ended put them in good mood.

**The scene passed to Stoick ordering his men into battle. "We move to the lower defences. We'll counter-attack with the catapults." The men quickly agreed as they all ran down the ramps.**

"Yeah, the catapults always have very solid arguments even dragons can't argue against," snorted Hiccup.

"Aye, even you can't deny that," nodded Gobber, smirking at his apprentice's cheek.

**A Monstrous Nightmare sweeps above, setting one of the houses on fire with its sticky fire.**

_**"See? Old village, lots and lots of new houses…"**_

"I thought there was only one Nightmare," commented a Nadder, Stormfly to be exact. "What is he doing all over the town?"

"I told you, looking for me," replied Hiccup, before frowning. "Actually, it's not so unbelievable once you know what happened later…"

Most Vikings winced. Being chased by such a dragon, with no training and no weapons must _not_ have been fun for the boy. How had he survived, no one knew…

**"Fire!" a Viking shouts at seeing that.**

"Ugh, we didn't need to see that," groaned Ruffnut when the view showed the man's face pretty up-close.

"Hey!"

**"Come on, let's go!" A blur of movement attracts Hiccup's attention to the people outside. A bunch of teens gathers water in their buckets from a nearby cart. One of them is a fat, tall blond who carries his bucket like it might break any second while hopping like his feet burned. Another is a tough-looking black-haired guy who's half as tall as the first and kind of looks like a human troll given his expression. Two more are revealed to be two blonds fighting over a single bucket, throwing water everywhere but at the fire.**

_**"Oh, that's Fishlegs, Snotlout, the twins Ruffnut and Tuffnut…"**_

**The last one, a blonde girl who looks like she'd had not a bad day, but an entire bad month given how she's scowling at nothing, carrying the bucket over to a burning house and throwing the water at the flames.**

_**"And…"**_

All Vikings and dragons were laughing at the description of the teens while they blushed. Astrid scowled at how she was introduced, then realized what she was doing and tried to relax her facial expression. It was hard, but she managed to fight her irritation down.

**Unfortunately for her, a dragon apparently decided to fight fire with fire and blasts the house directly, creating a huge explosion behind the girl, who is now turning around. Romantic music begins to play as Hiccup continues in a voice that can only be described as smitten harder than Stoick's hammer.**

_**"Astrid…"**_

Hiccup went wide eyed and tried to hide his now red face from everyone. "I did _not_ say that!" he protested, which did nothing to the people and dragons who were literally on the floor in laughter.

Astrid sighed at seeing the house explode behind her. While it did make her look badass, it was like the dragon had waited for the right moment just to spite her. She was surprised by how obvious Hiccup's crush on her was, though. He'd never really shown much emotions to people… not that she hung out with him a lot anyway.

Absent-mindedly, she socked Snotlout in the shoulder before he could say something inane like 'she's mine' or some other dragon dung like that.

**As she struts back to the cart, a little smirk works its way to her face, soon turning into almost a smile. And there's no doubt – that's not an innocent smile either. She's seriously looking like she just saw a fine catch and is seducing them on the spot. No two ways about it, it's also kinda obvious she's doing it on purpose since a raid gives no reason to smirk like that.**

This time, it was Astrid the one who gaped at the screen before hiding her face while the adults _howled_ in laughter. Even her parents weren't holding it in, and more than a couple adults had cramps at how her actions were depicted.

Khor smirked, deciding to add in a theory of his. "I may be wrong, but think: Astrid's gaze didn't move, which means she was eyeing a stationary target. In the middle of a raid, not many people would be still. Secondly, I highly doubt she's into much older people, which rules out the Tribe's warriors." He threw an evil little glance at the humiliated girl. "Which means she's looking at someone around her age, who is not moving… mmh, I wonder who that might be?"

Snotlout scoffed confidently. "Me, of course! She was looking at me while I saved the village."

He didn't mean to bring violent Astrid back, but that's exactly what his words did. The girl snapped her head up and punched him in the shoulder again – that's gonna be a wicked bruise. "I'd never look at you like that."

Gobber managed to hold his laughter long enough to wheeze out, "I-Is she looking at Hiccup?"

Astrid blushed more, but given the embarrassed red that already graced her cheeks, no one noticed that. Snotlout scowled, but his hurting shoulder told him that any self-centred remark wouldn't be taken well. The Vikings slowly stopped laughing when she gave no answer, instead becoming incredulous. Hiccup's jaw was six feet under.

"Let's just watch this 'past and future' thing," she muttered, not meeting anyone's eyes.

**The scene then shows Hiccup's face as he looks at her being badass… and it's painfully obvious that in all history of ever, no one has ever managed such a stupid expression prior to that day. A completely lovesick and utterly moronic look of awe is clearly written all over his face. He holds that look for a second, before a blissful but just as ridiculous smile reaches his face. Yup, totally seduced on the spot.**

By then everyone had cramps for the laughters. Who knew that, from a certain point of view, raids could be _that_ freaking hilarious? The two embarrassed teenagers, who were both doing their best to try and turn into Terrible Terrors to at least crawl in a tiny hole and die of shame, only made everything all the better.

"That's such-such a flattering description," Hiccup groaned, unable to stop himself from using his sarcasm.

Snotlout was unfortunately the first to recover from laughing – fortunately, the twins tried to bang their heads together to clear them, with him in the middle, which shut him up quickly enough.

However, not for long.

"Ha, Useless with Astrid? As if that'd ever happen!" he snorted.

Astrid's father grinned at him, though there was no warmth in that smile. "My little girl will become a Shield Maiden, but if she ever was to marry, Hiccup is the best choice for her. No offence to you Fishlegs, of course, but not everyone loves dragons like you do. Tuffnut is too crazy and would end up killed by her own axe. Hiccup is the only one I'd trust my daughter not to murder within a week of engagement." He chortled a laugh. "Of course, she's not gonna marry anyone, but if she had to, I'd certainly suggest him."

"Cheer up boy, you got the parents' approval!" grinned Gobber, nudging his apprentice and sending him sprawled on the floor, much to everyone's amusement. He just groaned and made no move to stand up.

"Hah, Astrid would never even look at Useless!" snorted the obnoxious idiot just before a giant hammer lodged itself in the ground not three inches from him. He froze on the spot.

Forcefully keeping himself calm lest he killed someone, Stoick retrieved his weapon. "My son has a name, Snotlout. Use it."

"Aye, and besides, Hiccup's far from useless!" added Gobber. "He helps me in the forge! Otherwise he wouldn't be my blacksmith!"

Many Vikings nodded. While the boy was definitely not high on their list of favourite people, they couldn't deny he did help Gobber in the forge… when he wasn't scurrying off to try one of his inventions, of course. The thought of Hiccup's odd contraptions sobered everyone up quickly. Yeah, Hiccup may not have been Useless, but he certainly was a menace at times… if only he could just do things the Viking way.

**The other teens join her as they all walk towards the cart. Astrid is still smiling, but she's the only one. The others all have fierce expression or straight-out scowls… and the twins seem to have gotten a bucket each now. Even the usually peaceful Fishlegs looks ready for a fight.**

"Wow, we look awesome," Snotlout breathed in wonder, while the twins grin… at the explosion behind them.

"Pity we weren't the ones to cause that though," noted Ruffnut.

"Don't worry sis, we can blow stuff up when we go back," her brother comforted her, putting a hand on her shoulder and thus earning himself a punch in the stomach. "Ouch! I like it, do it again!"

"Do they seriously like hurting themselves?" a Monstrous Nightmare asked, a bit weirded out.

"Unfortunately yes," sighed the twin's mother, glaring at her offspring. "Themselves, others, and buildings as well."

The dragons exchanged looks, then scooted a little further away from the two.

_**"Oh, their job is so much cooler…"**_

"Yeah, sure, running around trying to put out fires you know will never be put out in time… the pinnacle of coolness," snorted Gobber, shaking his head. "If fighting is what's cool, Hiccup, then you're closer to fighting than they are – you're around deadly weapons all the time!"

"And we know what happens when he tries to use them," mumbled Stoick, remembering just why exactly Gobber had no hair.

"Still, with all the fires and explosions, I wouldn't say 'cooler', if anything I'd say hotter!" Gobber finished his comment, drawing a few snickers and an affronted look from Hiccup at how he had used the lad's own weapon, sarcasm, against its inventor.

**Hiccup pretends to be looking at a bent sword while they rush by to get to another house, but as soon as they're gone he leans out to watch them. However, Gobber pinches the back of his vest with his tongs and easily lifts him up and back in the forge.**

**"Oh come on…"**

Once more, a few snickers were heard.

**"Let me out, please!" Hiccup protests as he is lowered back in the forge. "I need to make my mark!"**

**"Oh, you've made plenty of marks," Gobber smirked, before his expression turned darker. "All in the wrong places!"**

"Well, he's not wrong…" sighed Hiccup.

"Wait, you _know_ what you do cause a lot of damage to the village?" Spitelout asked, incredulous.

Hiccup shrank, guilty. "Well, it's meant to bring down dragons so if it doesn't work well of course it's dangerous…"

"And you still create that stuff?" Ruffnut asked. "Cool!"

"Why didn't you stop, if you knew it wasn't working?" Stoick frowned at his son, a bit peeved at his irresponsibility.

"If I remember correctly, Gobber's just about to say it," the boy replied dejectedly.

**"Please, two minutes, I'll kill a dragon! My life will get infinitely better, I might even get a date!" Hiccup begged once more… to absolutely no avail as Gobber's expression turns to exasperation.**

"Wow, desperate for a girl much, huh?" Toothless snickered from the dragon's side, careful not to be seen by anyone – especially by Hiccup lest he got grounded for that comment.

Stoick shook his head. "Hiccup, you're not a fighter. I'm sorry if you are shunned by many, but if you didn't try all those inventions and instead just focused on being a blacksmith, your reputation would get much better – not everyone in town is a warrior!"

"Are you seriously telling that to me with a straight face?" Hiccup asked sarcastically while a Nadder murmured "No? Feels like it though…"

"Hiccup," sighed his father. "I… I know I expect you to become a warrior, and you could become one, I'm sure of it – but not if you refuse to try the Viking way."

"But what if the Viking way isn't the right way for me?" he replied stubbornly. "Let's admit it, I definitely don't look like a Viking."

"If you worry about size, well neither does Astrid, yet she's the best warrior of her age," Gobber shrugged non-committally.

**"You can't lift a hammer, you can't swing an axe, you can't even throw one of these!" Gobber listed Hiccup's faults as a warrior… which is more or less the fact he's totally NOT a warrior, counting on his fingers before lifting a bola to prove his last point. A warrior from outside grabs it and throws it at a dragon, nailing it and bringing it down.**

"Wrong, wrong, wrong," grumbled Hiccup. "I can lift _your_ hammers, I cut the wood for my inventions myself, and the bolas is more of a matter of clumsiness."

"Aye, but you know what I meant, lad," countered Gobber. "You wouldn't be able to use them in battle."

Hiccup sighed. "Yeah, I know…"

To Snotlout, however, that was new. "Wait, you mean that Use-" Cue glare from Stoick. "I mean, Hiccup can actually use that stuff?"

Gobber shot him an annoyed look. "Eleven years messing around in the forge, remember? That stuff kind of lays around all the time!"

**The thud of the dragon hitting the ground is offscreen as Hiccup presents a wheelbarrow-like contraption in a corner. "Okay, but this will throw it for me." As he pats the contraption, it suddenly activates, and like a catapult's arm the sliding mechanism throws said bola, narrowly missing Gobber as it knocked out a Viking at the counter. A fellow Viking nearby looks at the downed man in interest, possibly wondering how that just happened.**

While a few snickered at the man's misfortune, Stoick and Gobber looked at Hiccup with an expression that said 'okay, now what's your excuse?'

He wisely chose to remain silent.

The twins did not. "Wow, that's so cool!" grinned Ruffnut.

"Though I don't know what it is…" added Tuffnut.

"Idiots…" sighed Astrid. Even _she_ could see it was a bola launcher of some kind… probably.

**"See? This is here is what I'm talking about!" Gobber scowls at him, advancing on the boy, possibly to stop that machine from firing again for his own sake.**

**"M-M-Mild calibration issue…" he tries to defend himself, but the blacksmith doesn't have any of that.**

"Well, that thing looks awfully complex and clever," noted a Nadder. "He built it all by himself?"

"Yeah, he's the only one stupid enough to do that," laughed Snotlout, just before an elbow in the guts courtesy of Astrid shut him up.

Stoick nodded in thanks at the girl before turning to -shudder- talk to the dragon. "Yes, that's the most recent of his… things."

"You must've taught him well," noted a Gronckle, directing the compliment toward Gobber, who suddenly looked sheepish.

"Well, I didn't exactly teach him to do that… I barely even know what's a calibration issue…" At the incredulous looks of the dragons, he scowled. "Oi, when you're in a constant war at all times, you don't waste time thinking about things like that, you build weapons!"

"You mean the boy learned all of that…" began one of the heads of a Zippleback. "All by himself?" the other completed.

The Vikings shrugged. Oh, they knew the boy was very creative at inventing things… just not good enough to make them work.

**"Hiccup, if you ever want to get out there, to fight dragons, you need to stop all…" The blacksmith pauses for a second, looking for the best way to put it, before going with bluntly honest. "This."**

**"Wha- But you just point to all of me!" he protests, and not wrongly so.**

**"Yes!" Gobber confirms, happy he's gotten what he meant. "That's it. Stop being all of you!"**

For a second, the dragons were silent, while a few Vikings winced at how blunt Gobber had been. Then, Toothless first and foremost, all dragons began to roar in outrage.

"How dare you tell a hatchling to stop being himself!"

"What is wrong with you Vikings?!"

"Do you not care for the hatchling at all?!"

"Stop, please stop!" Hiccup stood up and shouted, and slowly the dragons calmed down, wanting to see what he had to say on the matter. "Gobber's not wrong, even though he could've been less blunt. He's right, if I wanted to kill dragons, I would need to learn to do it the Viking way. He never said I _had_ to change, just that _if_ I wanted to fight, then I would need to change."

Slightly pacified, the dragons settled down, even though more than a few of them were still bitter about it. Toothless wondered how in the nine skies Hiccup hadn't gone insane long prior with all that criticism to his dream. Though, given what he'd done, maybe he wasn't really sane at all.

**"Ohh…"**

**"Ohh, yes," replies Gobber, unimpressed.**

**"You sir are playing a dangerous game," Hiccup threatens pointless, waving a finger under Gobber's nose, only succeeding in getting a deadpan from the man and a few condescending nods. "Keeping this much raw… Vikingness… contained? There will be consequences!"**

People snorted at that. "Sure, raw Vikingness…" drawled Spitelout. "Even I know that's not even a real word…"

"How was I going to say 'all that makes you a Viking' in one word otherwise?" the boy protested, frowning.

"Simple, you don't," retorted Tuffnut.

**"I'll take my chances," the blacksmith replies flatly, turning around to grab a sword before dropping it in Hiccup's arms. "Sword. Sharpen. Now."**

**His argument defeated, or more like completely ignored, the boy moves to the grindstone and dumps the sword on it before holding it still to sharpen it.**

_**"One day, I'll get out there."**_

"Yeah, when there are no raids," mumbled Spitelout.

_**"Because killing a dragon… is everything, around here."**_

"Why is it so important to you?" asked a Zippleback, the other hand completing the sentence. "I mean, we get we're raiders and all, but why would killing us be 'everything'?"

"It shows you're strong," replied Astrid, a bit shocked to be talking to a dragon but hiding it since no one else had answered the question. "Fighting invaders of any kind is proof you are a warrior of valour, and you are the most common of attackers," she finished with a not-so-subtle glare at them, making them mumble guiltily.

"And honour and valour here is what makes or fails a person," completed Hiccup, knowing fully well that he had neither in the eyes of the village.

**A bunch of Nadders, large bipedal dragons with round heads and beaks instead of snouts, are sniffing around a house before making a hole in the roof and dragging out a bunch of terrified sheep.**

_**"A Nadder's head is sure to get me at least noticed…"**_

More than a Nadder rubbed their necks with their wings. Wasn't that a cheery thought…

**Then two Gronckles pick up some dried fish and fly off with it in their jaws.**

_**"Gronckles are tough. Taking down one of those would definitely get me a girlfriend…"**_

"Ha!" laughed Snotlout. "Fat chance!"

Fishlegs blinked at him. "You do realize that a 'fat' chance is a 'large' chance so you basically told him he probably would?"

"What? No!" Snotlout tried to punch him, but he was too far. "I meant there's no way anyone would ever want Hiccup!"

Stoick snorted in disagreement. "We'll see once the Haddock charm sets in…"

"You mean the one that brought Mrs Ack to kick your butt all across town because you were annoying her?" asked Gobber, earning laughters from the people.

Hiccup was shocked. "Mom wasn't the only one he liked?"

His father sighed as he remembered the old times. "Your mother wasn't… popular… among those our age. Only after I got to know her, I began to love her like I do now."

"Yeah, like me and Astrid, once she gets to know me-Ugh!" Snotlout was cut off by a punch in the stomach. He grumbled, stood up and walked over to Fishlegs. While it put him farther from Astrid, that also helped him actually finish his sentences instead of being punched off.

**Two snake-like heads surround a house. One breaths some green gas in the top hatch, while the other opens the door before clicking its mouth and igniting it, blowing up the house. Soon after the heads reveal to be one single green dragon, flying out of the smoke.**

_**"A Zippleback? Exotic. Two heads, twice the status."**_

"Why is two heads better than one?" asked Barf while Belch continued, "It's still just one dragon."

"Yes, but cutting off one isn't going to kill it," explained Mulch. "So it takes twice the effort to kill both heads."

The dragons were doubtful, but kept silent.

**Stoick is on the catapult as the Zippleback flies by. Another Viking looks down at him. "They found the sheep!"**

**Clearly angry, the Chief throws his hammer on the floor before turning the catapult with the gears on its base. "Concentrate fire over the lower bank!" he orders as he pushes.**

"That's some impressive strength," commented a Monstrous Nightmare. Their species knew when to give credit to strength.

"Would be easier if they just listened to me and oiled the mechanism…" mumbled Hiccup, though he couldn't blame them. Making the gears accessible enough to oil them regularly would mean rebuild the entire catapult.

**The catapult fires, hitting a Deadly Nadder who was snatching up sheep – and probably killing both dragon and animal on the spot, given the boulder's size.**

_**"And then, there's the Monstrous Nightmare. Only the best Vikings go after those. They have this nasty habit of setting themselves on fire…"**_

**Stoick looks around to see if Berk needs more catapult support when he spots something burning the base of the catapult. Leaning over the edge to look at it, he sees the advancing flames – and the wickedly fanged snout of a flaming dragon as it jumps up and growls.**

**"Reload! I'll take care of this…" Stoick orders his men as he grabs his hammer, hitting the dragon in the face twice before dodging a bite and counter-attacking again. A whistling sound builds up as Stoick looks up, ignoring the dragon who, for some reason, looks at him, then goes off to find a better way to die.**

That Nightmare sulked at how the screen described his tactical retreat, and receiving a comforting tail in the back from his mate, which cheering him up a little.

"Yeah, I guess I forgot to say that, no matter the dragon, Dad is better than the best Viking, which means Nightmares are likely to quit while they can…" snarked Hiccup, knowing what would happen later. Stoick smiled proudly at his son's compliment.

"Don't worry son, if you train hard, one day dragons will not be a problem for you either," he reassured him before adding under his breath, "I hope…"

Snotlout held in a snort to avoid attracting the Chief's ire. If a Nightmare fled, then maybe it was better to keep his mouth shut.

_**"But the ultimate prize is the dragon no one's ever seen…"**_

**Hiccup, still sharpening the sword, looks up from his work at the sound.**

_**"We call it the…"**_

**A bunch of Vikings hear the noise and panics. "Night Fury!" one shouts. "Get down!" another adds as all of them duck. Behind them, a blue-purple blast hits the catapult, destroying its offensive functional mechanism in one hit, only the stone base remaining.**

**Stoick, still on top, leaps off the burning tower. "Jump!" he shouts to his men, knowing the catapult is done for.**

Toothless desperately tried not to snicker. Apparently even the best of the best of Vikings could be bested by the best of the best of dragons. He frowned. That was an odd phrasing to say the least.

Many Vikings sighed at seeing the Night Fury so completely vaporize a catapult with such ease. Damn beast…

**Hiccup leans out of the stall again… this time to look for the Night Fury.**

_**"This thing never shows itself, never steals food and…"**_

**Another blast nails the tower, destroying it further.**

_**"Never. Misses."**_

**Frowning, Hiccup keeps an eye on the sky as he steps back.**

"Wow, who would've ever thought Hiccup could look fierce?" exclaimed Tuffnut, surprised.

"That ain't fierce, that's scheming." Gobber shivered. "That's much, _much_ worse… if you have to choose between a Night Fury and a scheming Hiccup, choose the Fury."

A few Vikings sniggered while the dragons looked around. Was he really that bad?

_**"No one has ever killed a Night Fury. That's why I am gonna be the first."**_

"The dream of every Viking," sighed Stoick, shaking his head. "Son, while I appreciate the enthusiasm… there's a reason why Night Furies scare even the strongest Viking. They are ghost dragons, untouchable and unseen. You can't kill it the same way you can't kill the wind."

"We'll see…" grumbled Hiccup, crossing his arms.

Snotlout snorted. "The day _he_ takes down a Night Fury, I'm gonna… I'm gonna… what am I gonna do?"

"Eat a coal?" offered Tuffnut.

"Stab yourself?" added Ruffnut.

He waved them off, irritated. "I'm gonna call him Hiccup the Pride of Berk!"

"Deal," Hiccup replied emotionlessly, knowing fully well that he'd actually done it.

**Gobber is seen exchanged his tongs for an axe on his stub of an arm. "Man the fort, Hiccup. They need me out there." Then, almost as an afterthought, he turns to address his apprentice. "Stay. Put. There." He gives him a deadpan look. "You know what I mean. Raaargh!"**

**And there goes the meathead, off into the battle. Hiccup, left alone in the forge, gets an idea.**

"Oh boy," commented Gobber, rubbing his forehead. "One day I'll chain him to the anvil, I'm telling you."

"Oh shut up!" grumbled said boy while others snickered.

**"Hiccup!"**

**"Come back here!" two Vikings call after him as he leaves the forge running, dragging his wheelbarrow-thing-bola-launcher-whatever with him.**

**"I know! Be right back!" he calls back without turning, dodging sheep and Vikings on the way.**

"I'll chain him with a chain bigger than he is…"

**Three Nadders have surrounded some sheep. Suddenly, Stoick appears with a fishing net, throwing over them with a grunt of effort before jumping in to hold them down. "Let's get them!" he roars before one of the dragons spits fire, freeing its head. Stoick jumps on it and snaps its jaws shut. "Mind yourselves! The devils still have some juice in them!"**

Those three Nadders winced. Ouch. That was harsh. Though it wasn't like they could blame the Vikings – they were the raiders, after all. And the Vikings didn't know about the Red Death. To them, the dragons attacked for no reason, while the truth was that the Red Death wasn't just lazy, but also picky, as she wanted red meat to go along with the fish they served her.

**The scene cuts to Hiccup reaching a grassy outcropping of rock away from the houses, and with a clear view of the sky. With a grunt of effort identical to Stoick's, he throws open the wheelbarrow, revealing a double-bowed ballista-like contraption which he loads with a side lever, pulling both strings of the bows before loading a tied bola.**

"Wow, that looks so destructive," breathed Tuffnut, amazed. "I wonder, if we start being friends with Hiccup, is he gonna let us use that stuff?"

"That alone makes him a better friend than Snotlout," agreed Ruffnut.

Astrid rolled her eyes at the twins, but she couldn't say it wasn't impressive. Of course, knowing of Hiccup's past history of attempts, she doubted it would actually work the way he intended it to – not after misfiring earlier. Still, Berk had no such weapon and it was interesting to see how Hiccup had created it all on his own.

It definitely proved Gobber's words earlier. Had Hiccup focused on being a blacksmith, he'd be right after her the second most popular teen in the village. Despite common belief not all Vikings were warriors, and blacksmiths were immensely useful to keep the weapons coming.

**To his misfortune, however, the sky is perfectly clear of dragons as he looks around. "Come on…" he murmurs under his breath. "Give me something to shoot at. Give me something to shoot at."**

**After a few seconds of absolute nothing and silence -odd given the ongoing raid-, the whistle of a Night Fury makes itself heard. Hiccup's eyes widen for a second before he crouches to look into the crosshairs.**

**The whistle grows until a blue shot hits the catapult in front of him. A second later, the sleek form of a black dragon darts past.**

"Wait, that's a Night Fury?! The dragon from the start?" exclaimed Snotlout, bewildered.

Fishlegs, instead, was looking at Hiccup in something akin to awe. "You are the first to ever see a Night Fury…" he breathed reverently. "…and survive…"

"Well, it's not like he was really paying attention to me," shrugged the boy, accidentally using 'he' instead of 'it'. Thankfully, everyone was just too shocked to notice.

**Quickly making an approximate calculation of the dragon's route, Hiccup turns the ballista and fires, the recoil shoving him back and on the ground. The bola opens in mid-air and flies through the dark night. For a second, nothing is heard. Then, a smack and a pained screech made it clear what happened. Hiccup gets up, first shocked, then smiling proudly, as he watches the dark form of the dragon plummeting down and out of view.**

Aside from Hiccup and Toothless, everyone else was speechless. It was hard to comprehend. Hiccup, the scrawniest, least liked teen of Berk -and second least liked Viking after Mildew- had just taken down the mightiest of dragons, one even the strongest Viking could only ever _dream_ of killing.

Gobber's hook would've fallen right off his arm, hadn't it been firmly attached to it. The blacksmith could only gape in absolute shock at the sight before him.

Stoick didn't take much better. All the time he'd told his son to use the Viking way, and then the Hiccup way had gotten rid of the most dangerous dragon of them all – with no injuries for Hiccup. Screw Dragon Training, his son could've requested to be made Chief on the spot and by valour alone he would've surpassed Stoick himself! All the times he'd told Hiccup to Viking up, and yet, Hiccup had defiantly stayed the same, only to prove them all wrong by becoming the best of them, his way!

Astrid was conflicted. She'd always thought that Hiccup's sudden improvement in Dragon Training had been a trick, but now that he was a… no, _the_ Night Fury Slayer, how could she continue to think that? It was way more probable that he'd just taken time to get used to be with the other teens and couldn't properly focus on the dragons! No wonder that Zippleback had backed away from him, it must've smelled the blood of the Night Fury! At the same time, though, she felt depressed, because no matter what she would do, unless she killed a Night Fury herself -and she had never illuded herself about that, she couldn't do it-, she would never reach the same prestige as Hiccup had in a second.

Snotlout was frozen, literally frozen. Immense pride for his cousin was the predominant emotion. Forget himself, Hiccup fully deserved to be the hero of the war! Useless? Ha! Never again! Hiccup the Great! Hiccup the Dragonslayer! Hiccup… "Hiccup the Pride of Berk!" he shouted at the tops of his lungs, and soon all the Vikings were shouting with him, Stoick and Spitelout included. Even Astrid had, and without any kind of animosity. He fully deserved it.

Hiccup, on his part, had gone chalky white, finally understanding that if they had seen him take down Toothless, they'd see him release him. He would've moved away from the Vikings, but with the cheering crowd it was all but impossible. Also impossible was surviving all the pats in the back he received from just about everyone.

The dragons were stunned. They didn't know how the dragon had survived long enough to be brought in that room with them, but still they knew that after the Red Death, the Night Fury was the strongest dragon in the Nest. As afraid of Stoick as they were, suddenly they were wary of the boy as well. It wasn't anyone who could bring down a Night Fury. Actually, they had believed it impossible up to that moment. Even the dragon hunter, Grimmel or something, had resorted to killing them in their sleep instead of fighting them from what they'd heard.

Khor smirked, knowing the reactions would change once they saw what happened at Raven's Point. There was a reason he'd made everyone immortal. He could've just paralysed them, but Hiccup needed to face the consequences of his actions – or find allies. Besides, it wasn't like they'd kill him. Only beat him up a little.

**_Now, there is only one thing I need to explain in this one. Astrid. Basically every reaction story where they are taken from before the romantic flight scene has her basically hate Hiccup, then turn over a new leaf at the drop of a hat. All across the movies and the series, there are hints that she liked Hiccup even before that moment, but she'd always pushed it down to be the perfect Viking. One doesn't change their mind so completely in a second - not the same one who then is as stubborn as Hiccup the rest of the time in movies and series alike._**

**_As for the fire brigade scene, look closely - Astrid is definitely smiling. It's the only time she smiles before the romantic flight scene. And while it's done to make it clear she's Hiccup's love interest in the movie, a story can't just have that._**

**_I may have exaggerated it more than a little, but it's undeniable. She's smiling, and she appears to be smiling at Hiccup._**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**


	3. Don't Break Yourself to Make Me Proud

It took a while, but eventually, keyword being _eventually_, the Vikings noticed that the wall was frozen, and that it had frozen every time they had begun to talk in the past. Which meant that it wouldn't go on until everyone calmed down.

Now, calming down was the last thing they wanted to do, but the curiosity and anticipation of seeing Hiccup bring back the beast's head was too great. Everyone had forgotten it had already happened and no head had been brought back, but who cared? Not them.

The dragons were silent. Toothless had been whispering to them, telling them he was fine, no he didn't want them to attack the boy for taking him down, and that they should just watch the wall if they wanted to know how he'd survived.

**"Oh I hit it… Yes I hit it!" First incredulous, then triumphant, Hiccup throws his arms in the air, cheering his victory. Then his smile turns more than a bit smug as he turns around, spreading his arms. "Did anybody see that?"**

"Oi! We did lad!" shouted a Viking, making all the others cheer too.

Hiccup gulped nervously.

**Answering his call, that same flipping Monstrous Nightmare who had been wandering around all raid crawls up the cliff behind him, stepping on the bola-ballista – bollista? Whatever. His cheering cut short, Hiccup turns around to find it leering at him with a toothy grin. "Except for you," he comments, resigned but still sarcastic in the face of flaming death as the Nightmare rears back to strike.**

"Told you it was looking for me," grumbled Hiccup, while that Nightmare laughed at his expression.

"Okay, Hiccup, getting my sarcasm is all good and fine by me, but that's overdoing it!" exclaimed Gobber, bewildered by how sarcastic he was even when he should've been running already – screaming too, for good measure.

**As Stoick helps subdue the captured Nadders, he hears a scream and looks up, seeing Hiccup running away from the snapping jaws of the Nightmare – though props at him for actually evading the attacks.**

**Exasperated, Stoick sighs and sets off to save his reckless idiot of a son. "Do NOT let them escape!" he orders his men, who are still tying down the Nadders.**

Stoick looked slightly guilty, but in the end, how could he have known Hiccup had taken down a Night Fury and not just wandered off into danger like he usually did? Besides, had anyone in the Tribe told him they'd killed a Night Fury, he would've laughed at their faces, not just Hiccup.

The dragons found Hiccup's scream funny as well as his father's view of him. The Berkians may have thought it, but no one expressed it in words.

**Hiccup runs, with the Nightmare apparently enjoying the chase as it sprays fire behind him, until he hides behind one of the large torches. To no avail, as the dragon spits fire at that too, setting it on fire. Hiccup tries to peek from his right to see if it went away, but the Nightmare chose to go the other way and is unseen by the boy as it tries to take a bite out of him – not that there would be anything more than a bite, and a scarce one at that.**

**However, Stoick arrives just in time, throwing himself at the dragon and knocking it away and into the ground before rolling and coming back up standing. The Monstrous Nightmare got back on its feet and roared a challenge at the man.**

**Stoick merely adjusted his helmet.**

Now that caused a few snickers from both Vikings and dragons, though for different reasons. "Ha!" laughed Snotlout. "He considers the position of his helmet more focus-worthy than that reptile!"

"I guess he does care a lot about fashion," commented a Zippleback.

**The Nightmare tries to spray him with its fire, but only chokes out a little spray, and then a pathetic spit that barely exits its mouth. Suddenly much less confident, the dragon looks up at Stoick with worry.**

Cue more laughter from the Vikings as that Nightmare tried to hide her face from everyone else, dragons included.

**"You're all out," Stoick states before punching it thrice in the face and then kicking it away. Beaten and probably humiliated, the dragon staggers away and then breaks into a flight to escape the much tougher Viking.**

_**"Oh, and there's one more thing you need to know…"**_

**The torch's pole, now completely burnt despite all logic since it had previously been shown to be reinforced with metal at the base, snaps and falls down, letting the round brazier fall off and roll through the village, destroying ramps and causing mayhem until it almost squashed the netted Nadders. However, with the Vikings diving out of the way, the dragons manage to escape and fly off before being crushed. Hiccup's face says it all, wincing more and more with every crash or scream. "Sorry… dad."**

A few Vikings snickered quietly, trying to be respectful of the Pride of Berk, the Slayer of the Night Fury, but fail at seeing his face. Stoick sighed and ran a hand over his face.

The dragons didn't have any such reservation as they laughed, long and hard, at how everything played out.

Hiccup just blushed in embarrassment. That certainly hadn't been one of his proudest moments…

**The dragons fly off, with lots of sheep. Some even use the net they were held in to hold more sheep – devilish smart those devils. Put like that it made sense.**

**Hiccup tries, and fails, to look innocent as everyone stares at the retreating dragons. The raid is over and one thing is clear to everyone – they aren't the winners this time.**

**Daring a glance at his father, Hiccup tries to save some face while he can. "Okay but I hit a Night Fury," he states like it's the most normal thing in the world – which it definitely is not.**

The chuckles were renewed by how the scene was presented even as Stoick and Hiccup both cringe. Stoick knew he had been harsh on the boy, but he had never been good at withholding his temper and that raid had been really bad, which he had then -unfairly, he knew that- taken out on the boy.

On his part, Hiccup knew that his father's words were justified. He just… refused to let go of who he was just to accomplish his goal. He knew that if he were to train he'd get buffer in the long run, it wasn't possible to eat a lot and train hard without getting bigger. Only, that wasn't who he was, and he wanted to prove that who he was was enough.

Apparently, it wasn't, for the umpteenth time.

Among the teens, Snotlout and the twins were holding in their snickers out of respect, while Fishlegs looked nervous. Astrid, instead, felt sorry for the boy. At every raid in which Hiccup messed something up, he'd receive an earful in front of the entire village. Now, while a lecture was deserved and probably necessary, being scolded by the Chief and shamed before everyone else was more or less every Berkian's worst nightmare. She had to admit, Hiccup had to have a lot of stubbornness, courage, and insanity to go on inventing and doing things his way after so many humiliations… that, or he just didn't even care any more.

**Stoick grabs him and hauls him away – but still in front of the crowd. Hiccup goes on, trying to defuse the situation before it blows up, despite the fact his words are just adding fuel to the fire. "Aaaah! It's not like the last few times, Dad! I mean, I really actually hit it. You guys were busy, and I had a very clear shot."**

"Very clear shot my undies, Hiccup," exclaimed Gobber. "That was a one-in-a-million shot! Darkness, with no torches around to lighten the dragon, and only having had a glimpse of it before firing! That takes either incredible aim or the devil's luck!"

"And seeing what happened after that, I doubt it's the devil's luck," added Spitelout, making a few people grin. The boy was alive, so it wasn't like it had been a moment of grief. Seeing him run and scream had been pretty funny.

**"It went down, just off Raven's Point," continues the boy. Gobber looks after him in worry, knowing what is coming and unable to do anything despite wanting to. "Let's send a search party out there before-"**

**"STOP!" exclaims Stoick, fed up with his rambling, letting him go to emphasize his word with gestures. Hiccup, taken aback for a moment, does as he's told. "Just, stop. Every time you step outside, disaster follows! Can you not see that I have bigger problems? Winter is almost here and I have an entire village to feed!" It's not completely clear if he's angry at Hiccup or just frustrated because of his other problems, but whatever the cause, Stoick is letting his anger speak – blunt and truthful as it is.**

All Vikings winced, some in sympathy for Hiccup, some in guilt because the Chief had to handle everything on his own without help.

Though, oddly enough, hearing it from a third person's point of view made Hiccup feel a bit better. His father had mentioned 'bigger problems'… which meant he wasn't the biggest problem in the village like he always felt.

The dragons winced too, for another reason. Not having lived in the village, they knew nothing of Hiccup's tendency to mess things up, so it was quite baffling for them to see his own father use such harsh tones with him.

Toothless growled softly. He wasn't liking that part. Not. At. All.

**Hiccup looks hurt for a second, but it's only a second. Despite the sting, he knows Stoick is right – he just wishes he wasn't. So he resorts to his sarcasm, covering it up with a disappointed expression. "Yeah, between you and me, the village could do with a little less feeding, don't you think?" Several Vikings look down at their bellies and cover them with their hands as if to hide them in shame. Hiccup's not wrong. Despite being insanely strong, most Vikings have a good deal of fat too.**

The Vikings checked their own bodies for signs of fat, ignoring that pinkish, soft substance that covered their bodies, coming to the conclusion that no, they were all muscle. Maybe Hiccup just didn't pay enough attention or looked close enough.

Fishlegs looks down self-consciously, knowing that while strong, his body was far from 'all muscles'. Snotlout ignored the jab completely, thinking the same as most Vikings, while the other three had no such problems as they were all about as skinny as Hiccup.

**However, it was the wrong thing to say. Stoick, already frustrated, snaps. "This isn't a joke, Hiccup!" He sighs loudly. "Why can't you follow the simplest orders?"**

"Like you were any better at his age, they called you Stubboick for a reason!" Gobber rose to the defence of his apprentice, drawing laughters from dragons and teens, who didn't know that. Other adults looked away awkwardly – there had been a reason they had stopped calling him that, and it had been a very solid one called Stoick's hammer.

"You know what I meant, Gobber," grumbled the Chieftain.

**"I- I can't stop myself. I… I just, see a dragon and I have to just…" Hiccup makes a fierce face and gestures with his hands, though the gesture looks nothing like 'killing a dragon'. "…kill it, you know? It's who I am, Dad." To tell the truth, he doesn't sound convinced of that himself.**

**Stoick sighs in exasperation. "Oh, you are many things, Hiccup. But a dragon killer is not one of them."**

"That's what I've been trying to tell you all this time, Hiccup," added his father, who was not blinded by anger and frustration and could thus catch the opportunity to make him understand what he meant. "You didn't need to be a dragon killer. You could've been many other things."

"Yeah, but 'many other things' wouldn't make you proud of me," the boy mumbled dejectedly. "I mean… we're Vikings, Dad. We can be blacksmiths, tailors, fishermen… but in the end, everyone else is _also_ a warrior. Even that old goat Mildew is or was a warrior. And I know that if I don't become one myself, then I will never really stop being the runt of the village."

The adults murmured among themselves. As hard as it was to admit that out loud, the boy was right. In their society, fighting was essential. Everyone needed to know how to fight. A Viking who couldn't fight was like a man without a limb – not whole, not entirely a Viking.

Stoick sighed, knowing he had put pressure on the boy before. "Yes Hiccup, and you know you could become a warrior too, if you wanted. But if you refuse to train, how are you going to become a warrior?"

It always came down to that. Hiccup as he was was no warrior. Hiccup as he wanted to be was. There was no way of keeping both.

**"Get back to the house," he finishes, more gently, as he sees Hiccup slump, out of arguments. "Make sure he gets there," he adds to Gobber, who steps up and cuffs Hiccup on the head. Ashamed, Hiccup just walks away with him. "I have his mess to clean up."**

"How is that _his_ mess?" asked Toothless from the crowd of dragons, keeping himself low. "The Nightmare was the one who burned the pole – would you have preferred if he burned to death without shelter? Besides, whose fault is it that those torches are made of _wood_? Which, by the way, is like _asking_ for us to burn them down."

Stoick sighed. Hate as he did to admit it, the dragon did have a point on the torches. "Had he remained inside, or just working at the forge, none of that would've happened – even though I'm glad he shot down that Night Fury."

**Obnoxious laughter is heard as he is pushed through the walk of shame, one he is extremely familiar with, even more so than the twins, who always blow stuff up. The fire brigade makes sure to show him what they think of his latest failure. Ruffnut and Tuffnut are cackling, Snotlout is smirking, and Fishlegs is trying to copy him to no avail as he is too nervous to really mean it.**

**"Quite the performance," grins Tuffnut before being shoved by Ruffnut for whatever the reason – but since when do the twins need a reason to fight?**

"Given how he shot down a Night Fury, I'd say that was spot on," commented Spitelout, getting a few laughs in the moody scene.

Tuffnut sulked. "Well, I didn't know that!"

"Of course you didn't," replied his sister, bonking him on the head. "You don't know anything."

**"I've never seen anyone mess up that badly," Snotlout 'confides' him with malice, gesturing to the destruction in the village. "That helped!" Fishlegs keeps Hiccup in his sight, but says nothing as his frown gets uncertain.**

"I have," replied Ruffnut. "I've seen _you_ every time you flirt with Astrid!"

"Yeah, no one can beat you in failure department," sniggered Tuffnut, both of them earning themselves a punch in the face from the guy while Astrid smirked. It'd be a nice day in Helheim the day she didn't turn Snotlout down.

**"Thank you, thank you, I was trying… so…" Hiccup replies dejectedly, knowing they are actually right despite being unnecessarily mean about it. He doesn't look up from the ground, which works against him as, if he were to, he would see something he never thought he would.**

"What? What sight?" snorted Hiccup. "Of Snotlout's face up close? No thank you, I'd rather not have nightmares…"

"Too late for that, isn't it?" replied Gobber, gesturing to the dragons. "One of them was so eager to meet you!"

"More like eat me…"

**Astrid, sitting on the steps of a stone stair, is looking at him with a mix of pity and sadness. There's no hostility in her eyes, and she doesn't look even remotely as fierce as she usually does. Despite what he did, it's clear she doesn't think he deserves being jeered at like that. She follows him with her eyes until Gobber avenges Hiccup by shoving Snotlout down, slightly surprising her. After the idiot gets back up, she shakes her head and moves to get up.**

Snotlout stared at her, hurt, while Hiccup did the same, but in shock. "Why did you look at him/me like that?" they both asked in unison. Apparently speaking at the same time ran in the family as much as not listening.

Astrid shrugged, knowing fully well why. "He caused damage to the village, that's true, but it doesn't mean people should be allowed to insult him and make him feel ever worse than he already does," she replied flatly. "And we all know no one of us would enjoy being in his position."

Khor snorted quietly. Sure, she kept telling herself that. She just had to wait for a little while longer…

**As mentor and apprentice climb up to the Chief's house, he continues to try and convince at least one of them. "I really did hit one."**

**"Sure Hiccup," replies Gobber, but it's painfully clear he doesn't believe it – and why would he? He would probably not believe Stoick about that if he weren't to be shown proof, so it's not so shocking he doesn't believe Hiccup.**

"Well, it's not so shocking, but I should've!" noted Gobber, cheerful as always.

**"He never listens…" Hiccup adds.**

"Like you do…" snorted Stoick.

**"Well, it runs in the family."**

"Exactly, thank you Gobb-" Stoick cut himself off and glowered at him. "Wait, what does that mean?"

"Oh, you know, nothing… Stubboick." The teens and the dragons snickered again.

**"And- And when he does, it's always with this… disappointed scowl, like something skimped on the meat in his sandwich." Now at the door of his house, Hiccup turns around, puffing himself up to imitate his father. "_Excuse me barmaid, I'm afraid you brought me the wrong offspring. I ordered an extra large boy with beefy arms, extra guts and glory on the side! This here? This is a talking fishbone!_"**

Vikings and dragons alike cringed. The two of them were both at fault for the strain in their relationship, but as the older one of the two as well as father, Stoick should've taken the responsibility to sit him down and explain it to him. Not like he hadn't done that, but if one method hadn't worked, he was supposed to try another one, not stubbornly continue with one that didn't work.

Stoick sighed. "Hiccup…"

"I know, train and you won't be a fishbone any longer," Hiccup completed, irritated. "You've said that already, no need to repeat it every time the past shows me not knowing that."

**After his tirade, Hiccup slumps, out of fire to fight – much like a dragon, once his anger is out, he can't fight any longer.**

**That's when Gobber decides to butt in with some of his very useful and truthful, but a tad too blunt, advice. "Now, you're thinking about this all wrong. It's not so much what you look like, it's what's inside that he can't stand." And he ever dares pull off a smile after saying that.**

"Wow, basically you said my father hates me no matter what I do," Hiccup scoffed sarcastically, making Gobber shrug.

What he couldn't shrug off, though, was Stoick's fiery glare. "Gobber, tell me you did _not_ say that to my son." When he didn't reply, it became clear Stoick very much wanted something to break. "I do not hate how my son is 'inside'. We are just too different to see things the same way, which makes it difficult and frustrating to try and talk with him or understand him."

"Aye, aye, understood," Gobber conceded immediately, cowering slightly.

"Good."

**As the scene cuts back to Hiccup, he's wearing the most disbelieving expression ever seen by man. He obviously didn't except him to say something like that – not so carelessly. "Thank you for… summing that up." And with that last sarcastic remark, he turns to enter the house.**

**"Look, the point is, stop trying so hard to be something you're not," Gobber finally tells him, and more truthful than that there is not. Whether those words stand true for Hiccup, it's to be seen.**

**"I just want to be one of you guys," he laments before disappearing in his house. Left outside, Gobber sighs deeply and turns away to leave.**

"Hiccup…" Stoick stopped himself before he could say that he was one of them, knowing it wasn't true, not really. Or at least, the village and he himself didn't act like that. Instead, he went for another kind of reassurance. "You will be. Just give it time. You're still only fifteen."

The boy nodded dejectedly, though a pit of dread had opened in his stomach. How would they react to seeing him free Toothless? Not good, that was for certain. The real question was, how much bad?

**Almost immediately, though, the back door opens and Hiccup stumbles out before running off and into the forest.**

Stoick groaned. He wanted to scold his son for searching for the dragon on his own, but who could blame him? No one believed him, and if no one went, the dragon could've freed himself from the bola and returned to raid them.

And maybe that was what happened too, since Hiccup never brought its head back.

The thought turned him to stone. That meant that Hiccup was heading off into a forest where a Night Fury, a _Night Fury_, alive and furious, lurked.

**The scene abruptly changes to a golden dragon impaled by a sword. Stoick's voice comes from offscreen. "Either we finish them, or they'll finish us! It's the only way we'll get rid of them." The view pans down to show a village meeting, with Stoick at the centre and a map spread over the table. "If we find the Nest and destroy it, the dragons will leave. They'll find another home!" He grabs his knife and sinks it in the unknown section of the map – Helheim's Gate, the perennial fog bank that shrouded sea stacks and, deeper in, the Dragon's Nest. "One more search, before the ice sets in."**

The dragons looked at each other. True, if their Nest was destroyed, with the Red Death going down with it, they'd leave and never bother the Vikings against, even just out of debt for having freed them. However, between saying it and doing it there was an entire fog bank to surpass and a gigantic dragon to kill – something not even Vikings could beat.

**"Those ships never come back," protests another Viking, and people seem to agree with him.**

**"We're Vikings. It's an occupational hazard," Stoick waves off the complaint, appealing to his Tribe's pride. "Now who's with me?"**

**The proud Vikings of Berk look around, shaking heads, scratching necks and murmuring their dissent. Not a single volunteer.**

"That bad?" asked Astrid, surprised. She'd always known the searches for the Nest were hard and dangerous, but with all they had suffered from the dragons, she'd thought people would want revenge.

Apparently, if said revenge looked impossible, even the most bloodthirsty of Vikings would back down.

"We have our families to take care of," replied Spitelout, looking downcast for a second. "And invariably, those search return with less ships and more importantly, significantly less people. And it's been three hundred years that there's no improvement. It's just impossible."

"Nothing is impossible for a Viking!" protested Stoick, but no one stood up with him. He just back down with a sigh.

**"Alright…" concedes the Chief. "Those who stay, will look after Hiccup."**

**Hands shoot up in the air as every single Viking in the room, none excluded, throws their hand in the air, with Spitelout reinforcing it with a claim of loyalty to the Chief.**

**"Aye, that's more like it…"**

Hiccup, this time, couldn't even hide the shock and horror on his face. "They'd rather sail to their deaths than take care of me?"

Harald, Astrid's father, immediately realized how it must've looked from the teen's point of view and paled before hurrying to clarify. "No, that's not it Hiccup! It's just that, screw-up or not, you're the son of the Chief and heir of Berk. Looking after you means that if something happens to you, we'll answer with our heads – and we all know it's impossible to keep you out of trouble, which means that possible death in a search is better than certain death in the village."

"Man, that's harsh though," noted Fishlegs, casting Hiccup a look of pity.

"No wonder Hiccup spends more time in the forge than at home," commented Astrid, feeling sorry for him. That was the boy she'd been so envious of? In hindsight, maybe he deserved all that praise just because he'd never received it before. "Well-meaning or not, that's not something any child should ever hear from their parents…"

Stoick shrank guiltily. "I… honestly though we were joking. I usually 'threaten' them to look after the teens of the village, but I never thought they actually believed me…"

"Lad, you're lucky you didn't get his sense of humour then," Gobber said with a smirk.

**Gobber, seated at a table a bit away from the rest, wipes his mouth on his arm and gets up. "Well, I'll pack my undies."**

Many warriors nodded. Undies were one of the most important articles of clothing they had, right after armour. One couldn't fight well without comfortable underwear.

The teens, not used to real war and real underwear problems, all groan in disgust at the unnecessary information.

**"No, I need you to stay, and train some new recruits," Stoick disagrees as he nears the table.**

**"Oh, perfect," drawls the blacksmith, not sounding interested at all. "And- And while I'm busy, Hiccup can cover the stall. Molten steel, razor-sharp blades, lots of time to himself… What could possibly go wrong?"**

"Hey, you make it sound like I'm self harm or something!" protested Hiccup. "I know my way around the forge, thank you! I'm not the one who weekly stubs his own only remaining foot because he tripped into one of the hammers he left around!"

Struck by a terrible idea, Stoick grabbed Hiccup and yanked up his sleeves, revealing his arms. Aside from the odd scar from blacksmithing, one of which a burn that covered a quarter of his right forearm, there is no sign of old wounds. Sighing in relief, he released the boy. "Hiccup, you almost gave me a heart attack!"

"Sorry Dad," he apologized weakly, shrinking back on the floor. Not that he wasn't used to his father worrying about him -Stoick was a mother hen deep down-, but he'd never done it in front of so many people. Though, when he looked around, he only saw nods of approval sent Stoick's way. "I didn't mean to, I was just… commenting."

"Don't worry Hiccup, I guess I… overreacted a bit," the man sighed, now calmer. "Let's go on with this 'past and future' thing."

"It's called a movie, by the way," Khor interrupted, earning looks from all around. "What? I thought you'd like 'movie' better than 'past and future watching wall thing'. Easier to say too."

**Stoick sinks in a chair, looking burdened with the weight of the world on his shoulders – and the world is something even Stoick the Vast has a hard time lifting. "Oh, what I'm going to do with him, Gobber?"**

**The blacksmith looks at him before throwing out an option he's sure Stoick hasn't considered yet. "Put him in training with the others."**

"Wait wait wait!" exclaimed Snotlout, shocked. "You mean Hiccup wasn't in training before you told him?! But… how?! He's the son of the Chief, the heir of Berk! You shouldn't even have to think about it!"

Astrid frowned, remembering the first day of training. "Chieftain Stoick, sir… for how long have you trained Hiccup before Dragon Training?"

"I can answer that, zero," Hiccup replied with a snort.

The answer caused the blonde girl to frown even more as she continued to address Stoick. "But… if you didn't train him, why are you surprised he doesn't do things the Viking way? Even Vikings have to be taught how to be Vikings, they aren't born like that."

Stoick opened his mouth to explain that he didn't have a lot of time, and what little time he was free, either it was early morning, late evening, or when Hiccup was busy in the forge. Then he closed it, because suddenly, all those sounded like excuses. Indeed, why had he been surprised his untrained son acted… well, untrained?

Shaking his head, he could only sigh. "I make mistakes, a lot of them. I may be Chief, but I'm still human. I never though that if I didn't train Hiccup, he'd never learn. I thought maybe someone else…" He grunted in frustration. "I don't know what I thought."

"It doesn't matter any more," exclaimed Tuffnut, to which Ruffnut continued, like a Zippleback's two heads, "Yeah, Hiccup shot down a Night Fury even untrained!

**"No, I'm serious," replies the Chief, as if Hiccup in Dragon Training was some sort of unbelievable dream – or nightmare, depending how one looked at it.**

**"So am I," retorts Gobber, pushing the idea a bit harder.**

**"He'd be killed before you let the first dragon out of its cage!" Stoick bursts out, frustrated.**

Now that got him a few looks of disapproval from the other Vikings. Even before Hiccup shot down a Night Fury, they disliked the boy but it wasn't like they'd go as far as killing him and blaming it on the dragons to get rid of him!

The dragons themselves were outraged. "Wait, the only way for him to be _killed_ before we are freed…" reasoned Stormfly, the others quickly catching on.

"Would be for a _Viking_ to do it, or more specifically the fat blacksmith or one of the other hatchlings!" exclaimed Meatlug, pissed at how Stoick thought his own people would be capable of cold-blooded murder, especially the hatchlings that still didn't have a drop of dragon blood in their smell.

"We'd never kill him just because we don't like him!" Snotlout shot up. "True, Hiccup was never among my favourite Vikings before killing that Night Fury but I'd never go as far as killing him! Hell the only time even just broke his arm was by accident, because I slipped and…" He trailed off as he received deadpans from the dragons at his retelling of how he'd hurt the skinnier boy. "I'll just… shut up now… yeah, that."

**"Oh you don't know that," Gobber waves off his concerns.**

**"I do know that."**

**"No you don't."**

**"No, actually-"**

**"No you don't!" exclaims the blacksmith, winning the battle but not the war.**

**Stoick sighs as he continues to argue why his son shouldn't be put in Dragon Training. "Listen, you know what he's like." The man gets to his feet and starts pacing behind Gobber's bench. "From the time he could crawl, he's been… different. He doesn't listen, he has the attention's span of a sparrow…"**

"Hey, not my fault you tried to teach me how to braid your beard!" protested Hiccup. "Gobber says I'm really focused when I work!"

"Aye, that he is," nodded the blacksmith before looking at Stoick. "Though you're right, when he's not interested or driven, it's impossible to have him stick to a task."

Hiccup rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue at him, which he replied in kind.

**"I take him fishing, and he goes hunting for… for trolls!" Stoick finishes his tale as he stops before a painting of a Viking slicing a dragon's throat open. Meanwhile, Gobber shakes his head and continues drinking, until his metal tooth somehow comes loose and in shock, he spits it out into the tankard prosthetic he's wearing at the moment.**

**At the mention of trolls, though, the blacksmith turns around, tankard ringing from the tooth inside it, ready to defend his beliefs. "Trolls exist! They steal your socks." He shrugs with a vaguely pensive look. "But only the left ones. Ha, what's with that?"**

"Uhh… maybe because you only have left socks?" asked Hiccup, pointing at Gobber's wooden right leg. "You kind of don't need right ones any more."

Blinking in realization, a wide smile spread across the blacksmith's face. "Ah, so that's why!"

Everyone else just rolled their eyes.

**"When I was a boy," Stoick begins his when-I-was-a-boy tale, one all the villagers have heard time and again every time he needed to show what a true Viking was, and immediately Gobbers groans out an 'oh, here we go'. Ignoring him and his eye roll and also ignoring how he is trying to get his metal tooth back from the tankard with his too-fat hand, the Chief continues. "My father told me to bang my head against a rock, and I did it! I thought it was crazy, but I didn't question him. And you know what happened?"**

"He got a headache?" guessed Fishlegs.

"He got a headache," nodded Gobber.

"I got a headache," sighed Stoick. "But the rock did split in two."

"And then people say I'm boneheaded," Hiccup commented, rolling his eyes. "Now I know where I got that from."

**"You got a headache," states Gobber, remembering that day quite well. 'Stubboick strikes again', that's what people had said. Stoick had spent half a week banging his head against that rock, helmet on until it bent too much to be wearable, then bare headed. Though in the end, the heir of Berk's thick skull did win over that poor, innocent rock.**

"Wait, you mean it seriously happened?" asked a Gronckle, mystified. Even they had a hard time breaking rocks by headbutting them!

"More or less…" sniggered Spitelout. "I've been told that on the fourth day _someone_, whose name is unknown, used a pickaxe on the rock until it was frail enough to be broken."

Stoick frowned. "Why must you always undermine my achievements, brother?"

"It's part of what makes me your brother," shrugged the black-haired Viking.

**"That rock split in two." As Stoick lumbers away, Gobber retrieves his metal tooth and hammers it back into place. "It taught me what a Viking could do, Gobber. He could crush mountains, level forests, tame seas!"**

"Literally no one but the Gods can do that," Hookfang deadpanned at the Chief.

Stoick huffed in irritation. "It's an exaggeration meant to drive a point across!"

**"Even as a boy I knew what I was, what I had to become…" He sits back down, resigned. "Hiccup is not that boy."**

Ouch. Hiccup winced for a second, but he knew his father was right. Even hadn't he freed the Night Fury, he still wouldn't have been like his father. They were different, too different. Where his father was all unbeatable strength and skill with weapons, he had a cunning intellect and a sharp mind.

Astrid frowned again. The Chief said that, and yet he still never tried a different approach with his son. He said it out loud, they weren't similar, so what worked for the Chief would never work for the heir. As little as she liked Hiccup -because no she didn't have a crush on him, screw what Khor said-, he was the heir and one way or the other he needed to be ready to take over his father's position.

**Realizing he has the opening he needs, Gobber drives his point home. "You can't stop him Stoick. You can only prepare him." Turning around to look at his old friend, he continues, "Look, I know it seems hopeless, but the truth is, you won't always be around to protect him. He's going to get out there again, he's probably out there now!"**

**Stoick reflects on those words. Gobber, as odd as he is, has lived long and is full of advice for those who need it, and Thor only knows he needs advice for that son of his.**

"Finally someone who tries to think a way around the problem," mumbled Hiccup. While he didn't want to be in Dragon Training any more, the gesture had been a kind one. Gobber couldn't have known he'd change his mind so suddenly.

**An aerial view of the village shifts to the right, moving over peaks and overlooking forests. Then it changes to a hurriedly hand-drawn map in a notebook, with a trajectory traced on it. Hiccup is revealed to be holding the book himself, charcoal stick in hand and eyes closed as he prepares himself to open them to check if the dragon is there.**

**As he opens his eyes, though, only the sight of undergrowth, trees and rocks greets him, and he sighs in frustration, moving on as he checked out another possible landing site. Suddenly caught by a bout of anger, he scribbles all over the page before shutting the notebook and putting it away, exasperated.**

**"Oh, the Gods hate me," he groans as he walks and kicks a pebble. "Some people lose their mug, or their knife. No, not me, I managed to lose an entire dragon?!"**

"Son, the Gods must be smiling upon you if they allowed you to hit _that_ dragon," Stoick gently reminded him.

Hiccup shrugged. If so, then the Gods still had a lot to make up for.

**Angry, he slaps a low branch out of the way, only to have it snap back in place and hit him in the face.**

Contained snorts of laughter were heard by the Vikings, and not-so-contained from the dragons. Even Toothless grinned toothlessly in amusement.

**"Ow!" Resigned to be the Gods' chew toy, he looks up, only to see the snapped trunk of a large tree. Following it down, he sees a large trench dug in the ground as if by a large object that slid at high force on it. How the hell did he not notice that? Creepy music begins to play as the trench is shown disappearing into the forest.**

Fishlegs wanted to point out that he hadn't looked to the left yet, but wisely chose to stay silent. Everyone was holding their breaths, even the dragons.

Also, that music was freaking scary in a situation like that! How did Hiccup not run away screaming the moment music began to come out of nowhere in the middle of a foggy forest, with a Night Fury around?!

Khor chuckled at their horror. "Oh, about the music, those are like the narrator's voice – the people shown can't hear it. Only we can."

Everyone relaxed slightly. At least it hadn't actually happened.

**Uncaring of the possible danger, Hiccup follows the trench, avoiding a root and looking around. Once he's reached the end, though, he spots a glimpse of a black creature laying on the forest floor and immediately ducks again, gasping in fright.**

All Vikings gasped alongside him and ducked as well. The dragons couldn't find it in themselves to laugh about it.

**Hesitantly, Hiccup peeks out from the top of the trench before fully standing up, seeing as the black creature didn't move at all. Just to be a little safer, he draws his knife – a pathetic little blade, to be honest, but that would still do for the job, unless the creature had freed itself from the bolas – and had it done so, it would've flown off, so the knife isn't a bad choice. Better than nothing, anyway.**

**Terrified, but fighting against the fear, Hiccup stumbles closer, hiding behind a boulder. Then he dares sneak a peek from its side, coming to the conclusion it's safe enough to come out in the open – and so he does.**

A few Vikings looked pale enough to be about to faint in fright. The _Night Fury_, the most legendary and feared dragon of them all – one so strong and dreaded that even the strongest Viking could only, in the Book's words, 'hide and pray it did not find them'. And boy was that good advice.

As they watched, the boy they disliked most of all, the weakling no one thought could ever defeat a fly before Dragon Training, much less a dragon, walking closer to the bane of all Vikings, showing less fear than the Vikings safe in the halls.

The dragons had to hand it to him – the boy had some serious guts to get so close. That, or he completely out of his mind, to the point where he should be just thrown off a cliff lest he went on a crazy murder spree.

**The legendary Night Fury is revealed in all its magnificent glory. The smooth black scales cover all its long, sleek body, more aerodynamic than any other dragon he's ever heard of. The slightly rounded head is adorned by frills that act as ears, and its eyes are closed. It's unmoving. Dead, maybe.**

They wanted to cheer, they really did, but until they were sure, they were too nervous. And Hiccup was nearing that thing with barely a thought!

"Yep, I knew it," nodded Gobber, still white as chalk. "Insane. Totally insane. Completely crazy. Off in the head. Nuts, totally nuts."

**"Oh, wow," comments Hiccup, sounding extremely deadpan for someone who is just a few feet away from the deadliest dragon ever. "I- I did it. Oh, I did it. This- This fixes everything! Yes!" He pumps a hand in the air, victorious, before planting a foot on the creature's shoulder. "I have brought down this mighty beast!"**

"You have, son!" cheered Stoick, breaking out in the widest smile he had ever smiled.

**Suddenly, the Night Fury grunts and moves, shoving him off and against the rock.**

_Thud thud thud thud thud_. A few Vikings couldn't take the pressure and fainted. Being close to a dead Night Fury was unnerving enough, but being close to a live one? That was something they only ever dreamed of in the darkest of nightmares.

Stoick went paler than white. His son was barely a foot away from the deadliest of devils, and it was still _alive_!

The teens as well froze. How was Hiccup even remaining standing?! He should've been running away screaming by then! For Thor's sake, even strong warriors like Stoick, Spitelout and Gobber would be wary of being that close to the beast.

Astrid noticed something though, something that made her heart turn to stone with dread. _'It's mouth isn't tied shut,'_ she realized. _'It… It can still fire!'_

**Shaking like a leaf but not giving up, Hiccup approaches the exhausted beast once more, dagger pointed to strike. The dragon's breath comes in harsh pants, chest expanding with every one of them. The view slides across the beast's body until it reaches the head. The closed eye is momentarily hidden by the tip of a wing, and when it comes back into view, it's open and looking straight at Hiccup.**

With a keening wail, Fishlegs fainted. A few other Vikings followed his example, though the majority still stood, frozen in worry and anticipation.

Stoick found that gaze unnerving, too unnerving. That thing knew what his son was about to do. There was no other explanation for the shiver that ran down his back.

Astrid too was frozen by the glare of the creature, though for a different reason. That eye… it was too human. It held too many emotions.

**Despite being bound and defeated, the dragon is still strong, and all that strength is shown by the glare he fixes Hiccup with, full of dislike bordering on hatred.**

**Hiccup, taking notice of it, cringes before turning away and steeling his expression into a scowl. A rumbling croon from the dragon forces him to look back at the eye, that is still looking at him, as if challenging his willpower. Music begins to play, highlighting the importance of the moment as well as the gravity.**

**Breathing hard, Hiccup tries to calm himself the only way he knows how. He masks his fear and his uncertainty under a facade of fierceness, trying his best to imitate his father's scowl as he talks more to himself than to the beast. "I'm gonna kill you dragon. I'm gonna… I'm gonna cut out your heart and take it to my father." He reverts his grip on the knife, his scowl getting deeper as he fights his emotions down deeper. "I'm a Viking…" Another croon makes him snap, "I'm a VIKING!"**

By then, everyone forgot how to breath, but three of them were the most heavily affected.

Stoick was proud of his son for doing that but for some reason… it didn't feel as good as it should've. He should've been proud his son was about to kill the deadliest dragon of them all. Proud that his son would become a legend just for that one act. And yet, it didn't feel right. It didn't feel like something Hiccup would do. He'd said it himself, Hiccup was not a dragon killer. Seeing him like that… part of him was sickened by how his son had to force what he was aside just so he could be accepted by the Tribe. And for a second, a crazy thought darted across his mind. _'Don't do it son. Leave it to die on its own. Don't break yourself just to make me proud.'_

Astrid was still in shock. That dragon could've easily killed Hiccup as soon as he neared it, with a simple plasma blast. Why hadn't it done so? Why hadn't it killed him? And why was it waiting for Hiccup to kill it before acting?

Gobber was the only one who noticed the uncertainty, and worry overtook him. Hiccup had gone too far, he couldn't go back at that point.

Hiccup, instead, was just terrified. Just as much as his onscreen self was, but this time, of a completely different race.

**The dragon wails and stares at him while he puffs himself up with false bravado, false will to take a life. Hiccup closes his eyes and raises the knife above his head with both hands, ready to sink it in the dragon's chest. Then it happens. His resolve cracks, and he opens his eyes, just enough to peek at the dragon, that is still unmoving.**

**The dragon notices. Its glare turns into an incredulous and maybe even hopeful stare. The hatred drains away, replaced by shock and hope for mercy.**

**Hiccup stares at it a second longer before desperately trying to fix his resolve, knowing that he couldn't back down now.**

**Seeing this, the dragon loses all hope and will to fight. It closes its eyes and lays its head back down, waiting for the final strike. Unbeknownst to him, Hiccup still hasn't moved.**

Stoick looked on with hope. Maybe his son would just leave it die and stay who he was. He would still have shot down a Night Fury, just not have gutted it like a butcher.

Astrid was torn. Part of her knew all dragons were merciless raiders and should be killed on sight. Another part of her was sickened by the scene. She was sickened by how the dragon had just given up on his life, and she was sickened by seeing Hiccup, the least violent person she'd ever known, trying to force himself to become a killer just because society said so. She was sickened because killing in battle was one thing, but killing a defenceless being that was already defeated was something else entirely. It was wrong for her to feel like that and she knew that, but like the Chief she was human, and humans had emotions.

And as it turned out, dragons too. She dared at glance at the boy in the hall with her, finding him to be white as chalk, and barely looking at the screen. Instead, he was looking around him… at the Vikings. Shock ran through her. That didn't mean… It couldn't mean…

Gobber, though knew it meant that. Hiccup hadn't done it. And… he feared he knew why. That scene reminded him of all the times Snotlout and the twins had beaten Hiccup up. Hiccup would usually glare at them as he took the beatings, sometimes he would hope they were in a good mood so the hits would be less, but the end was always the same – the lad would resign himself to his fate, knowing he could do nothing.

The dragon had gone through the same stages, and Hiccup had seen it. Killing him would put him in Snotlout's place. The bully. The oppressor. And Hiccup couldn't do that.

The dragons exchanged glances and looked at Toothless, who was just keeping an eye on Hiccup, ready to jump in to save him in case he needed him.

**Hiccup can't do it. He tries to, but he can't force himself to be something he's not. He's not a killer, dragons or not. He lets the knife fall down and runs a hand over his face before looking at the dragon's tied-up body. Shame grows on his face as he steps away, no more frightened, but sickened by his actions. "I did this…"**

**As he's about to step away, he dares a glance back. The dragon still awaits the death blow, and the bola doesn't give it enough mobility to move. It's gonna die of thirst or hunger – if something doesn't kill it first. With a sigh, Hiccup prepares himself for something that goes beyond stupid or crazy, and enters the realm of suicidal.**

**The view changes to the Night Fury's closed eye. A sawing noise is heard and the eye snaps open in shock. Then Hiccup is shown looking around to check no one is there as he cuts through the ropes holding the dragon. The Night Fury watches his raptly as he works, unable to believe a human would do such a thing.**

Deathly silence filled the hall for a few seconds. Then all hell broke loose. Hiccup, who had distanced himself from the Viking as much as he could while they were distracted, started to back away even more as the roaring crowd turned to him for answers – answers that would not satisfy it. His father's eyes were blazing with fury, and the others weren't too far behind. The dragons weren't helping, either, frozen in shock at seeing a Viking spare a dragon.

All but one specific reptile, who darted across the hall and reached Hiccup's side in seconds, roaring in defiance at the crowd and successfully silencing it.

"Hiccup… come here," Stoick ordered, his voice a mix of rage for what he'd done and worry about him being so close to that monster.

"Nonsense!" Toothless roared, reminding everyone that dragons had indeed been gifted the ability to talk. "He spared my life. I will protect him from all harm until my last dying breath! And this includes protecting him from you if I need to!"

"Now, now, now," Khor interjected, waving his hands to stop both parties. "While I'm sure you both want to snap at each other for a few months more, we'll never be done with this if we don't go on. Let's make a deal. The movie, without counting interruptions, lasts one hour and a half. You can argue about whatever you want _after_. Okay? One and a half hours. It doesn't sound so impossible."

Both Stoick and Toothless glared at the man for suggesting that, but they knew better than to disobey. Despite him being near silent, the man was still the one who had brought them there, somehow. He had a power no one of them understood.

So they all sat back down, with Hiccup and Toothless sitting between dragons and Vikings, not at home in neither side, as they waited for the movie to go on.

**_As you might've noticed, Khor won't speak a lot. Without offense to anyone, I don't really like when the author's SI has to comment a lot on the story. I'd much rather express the thoughts and let them be silent than use my SI - learned from experience._**

**_Now, you might also thought I've underwritten Stoick's reaction. Honestly, I don't like how in all fanfictions the whole 'traitor' thing is overblown and takes up the whole focus instead of changing the Vikings' minds. And don't worry - minds WILL be changed._**

**_Also you might've noticed Astrid is a bit sharper than in most stories. To me, in the movies, she looks like someone who would analyse what happens and finds the reason. And think about it, of course. Where the gang just ditched her for Hiccup when he got famous, she (envy speaking, true) instead thought about it and deemed it too unlikely to be true. Though, if her theory had been correct... who ever said the recruits can't train with someone outside of Dragon Training?_**

**_See you on the next update!_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**


	4. Not Always

After Mt Stoick's eruption, it took a while for the Vikings to settle down again, and most of them were glaring daggers and axes at the boy. Pride of Berk? Yeah, right. As if. Never again they'd make that mistake.

"Well…" Tuffnut spoke up. "He did shoot down a Night Fury, though. Killing it or not, that's still more than anyone else has ever done."

Everyone looked at him in shock, even the dragons. He just shrugged. Traitor or not, that took some damn good aim. And besides, the Thronston twins never really cared about the rules, so why would they care if one of them was a traitor? As long as they weren't banished, the lectures went in in an ear and went straight out from the other.

Gobber was struck hard by the scene, though for a different reason than Stoick's. The dragon had fallen out of the sky and carved a giant trench in the ground – chances were it would never fly again due to tears in its wings. It was as good as dead, just waiting for someone to go and kill it. No, he was shocked by Hiccup's actions. Not being a killer was one thing, and he could understand why he'd not killed it. But freeing it, knowing it would try to kill him the moment it was free? That required a reason, a very strong reason. And no one ever taught Hiccup to have mercy of a dragon.

Astrid was troubled. Hiccup was a traitor, the worst kind of traitor. Even worse than Alvin the Treacherous. But the problem was, he knew what he was doing was treason of the highest calibre, and he did it nonetheless. Aside the fact he'd willingly committed treason, what made her conflicted was how it didn't fit with his goal. He'd always only wanted to be accepted by the village, and he'd finally found a way. All he would've needed would've been to take some scales from the beast, run back to the village and show them to the people to at least make them look for that dragon, if not believe him outright. What had brought him to erase his dream just to save a dragon's life? And not just any dragon, the dragon that had been terrifying the village ever since it first appeared, years and years prior.

The only answer was what Gobber had told him at his house. 'Stop trying so hard to be something you're not', which meant that Hiccup wasn't a killer and shouldn't act like he was. But that was what being a Viking was all about, wasn't it? It was pushing back what you are to be a warrior. The parts of you that fitted into being a Viking remained, the rest had to be erased. Everyone in the village had done that.

Hiccup hadn't.

Despite wanting to be a Viking like everyone else, Hiccup…

Realization dawned upon her as she replayed what she'd seen of the 'movie' thus far. Hiccup had prioritized remaining himself over being accepted. Who he was had been more important than who he wanted to be.

She suddenly understood why Hiccup always failed in training like his father wanted him to do. For the same reason he hadn't killed that dragon. He valued his own individualism more than the Tribe's acceptance. How could someone be trained when he didn't want to be trained like that in the first place?

She didn't know what to make of that. On one hand, the stubbornness required for such a choice, and the courage slash insanity required to uphold it, were definitely Viking-like. On the other hand, that choice and its consequences weren't. Though, deep down, it had still been Hiccup's choice. What good was it to be a big strong Viking, if one couldn't even make his own choices?

**However, as soon as the last rope has been cut, the Night Fury leaps up and throws Hiccup against a rock, pinning him with with a single claw. Music begins to play anew, but this one is unsettling. Sure his end is just behind the corner, Hiccup cringes and tries to look away.**

A few Vikings mumbled a 'good riddance to the traitor', but most froze at the Night Fury pouncing. A few more fainted, while Fishlegs finally woke up and squeaked at the sight of a furious and _free_ Night Fury, unable to form any sort of coherent words.

Astrid could honestly say, she was pretty much petrified. _'The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself…'_ she thought, terrified. And it was angry. _Very_ angry, at the boy who shot it down.

Stoick and Gobber were close to having a heart attack.

**However, the eyes of the Night Fury are hypnotic. He can't look away. He is panting from the fright, but the dragon is just glaring at him, making no moves to attack… for the moment. Shocked and confused, Hiccup relaxes ever so slightly, turning to look at the dragon more fully.**

**Then the dragon rears its head back, and Hiccup turns away completely, knowing this is the end.**

If one were to hear the thoughts of the Vikings at that moment, it would be more or less a continuous, hyper-fast string of 'ohmyThorohmyThorohmyThor' repeated infinitely.

The dragons were intrigued, however. It was clear the Night Fury hadn't appreciated being shot down, but the boy was still alive. Mysteries of life.

Hiccup just covered his ears, and after a second so did Toothless.

**Instead of blasting him to smithereens, however, the dragon opts for roaring at his face as loudly as he could, stunning him in the process. Then, with a scowl evident on its features, the black beast bounds away and takes off awkwardly, crashing into a rock and disappearing from view.**

A few more Vikings keeled over, breathing hard, and a few dragons did as well. The wrath of a Night Fury was terrifying no matter the species.

Hiccup, however, felt like he needed to know something. "Hey… what did you roar at me?"

The black dragon grinned at him. "Simple, I said 'thank you but never again'. You didn't get the message?"

"I got the 'never again' part," snorted the boy.

**Left on the brink of a heart attack from the near-death experience, Hiccup pants as he retrieves his knife and stands up, watching the Night Fury disappear from view.**

"How- How are you even standing after something like that?!" a Gronckle exclaimed, bewildered. Many dragons nodded. Many of them would've remained down until they were sure danger had passed. Some of them would've probably fainted on the spot.

Hiccup shrugged. "No idea."

**Once he's sure the dragon is gone, he turns to walk away, but his weak legs fail him and he faints where he stands, falling on the ground.**

No one could blame him for that. Untrained, weak, with barely a weapon, against the mightiest of known dragons? Honestly, everyone was surprised he hadn't gotten a heart attack the moment he noticed the beast was still alive.

Stoick forced himself to calm down alongside Gobber. Whatever the reason, the dragon hadn't killed him when it could've. Once this 'movie' was over, they'd get their answers from the boy himself. For now, they had to see how a war ended. And also wake up the ones who had fainted and tell them what happened.

Astrid, on the other hand, felt even more conflicted watching that. A dragon had had mercy of a Viking, not just any Viking but the one who had shot him down. The Night Fury in the hall with them didn't seem to be angry at the boy, which meant it probably already knew, and it had spared him nonetheless.

Just what exactly had just happened?

The other teens exhaled heavily after the difficult scene. Even the twins, lovers of all things destruction and mayhem, had nothing to say.

**The scene changes to Stoick rekindling the flames of the hearth. The door opens and Hiccup walks in before closing it behind him. Cringing at the sight of his father, Hiccup tries to sneak up the stairs. However, Stoick knows he's there, and catches him as he climbs up the steps.**

**"Hiccup."**

**Caught red-handed, Hiccup winces and stops crouching on the stairs. "Ah… I… have to talk with you, Dad," he mumbles dejectedly.**

**"I have to speak with you too son," replies the man, standing up to face Hiccup.**

**"I think it's time I think you learned don't want to fight to fight dragons dragons," they talk over each other, making a mess of the sentences while they are at it. "What?/What?"**

Most beings in the hall blinked, not having understood much of what the two of them had said.

"Like father like son," snorted Gobber.

**"Ah… you go first," Stoick offers as they both realize how awkward that was.**

**"No, no… you go first," replies Hiccup, trying to delay the inevitable as long as he could.**

**"Alright… you get your wish." Stoick wrings his hands, not completely sure that what he's doing is the right thing but trusting his friend's advice. "Dragon Training. You start in the morning."**

"Oh, so that's how it happened," commented Ruffnut. "Chief Stoick let him in."

"What?" Stoick glanced at the crazy female twin.

"Oh, you'll see, just something I wonder later on," shrugged Tuffnut, remembering the first day of training.

**"Ah, man, I should've gone first," groans the boy, realizing his mistake too late. "Because, I was thinking, we have a surplus of dragon-fighting Vikings, but do we have enough… bread-making Vikings, or small-home-repair Vikings?" He mimics every job as he goes, punching the air for the fighters, spreading his hands with a tentative smile for the bakers and mimicking repairing something small with a focused expression for the carpenters.**

"Aw, he's just adorable," commented Meatlug, cooing at his onscreen expression. A few other dragons nodded.

"Aye, if only my mate was so cute…" complained a female Hideous Zippleback, earning herself a double tail slap from said mate, who sulked in silence.

A few Vikings agreed, but the truth remained the truth. Adorable as he might've been, Hiccup was a nuisance to the village, and now even a traitor. They were warriors, not mother hens.

**"You'll need this," Stoick speaks over him, handing him an axe that's about as big as Hiccup, ignoring the fact that a good weapon should be sized to the wielder to grant the best performance.**

Gobber scowled at him. "Stoick, you gave the lad that axe? It's too heavy for him to use!"

"Actually it isn't, I just didn't want to use it," replied Hiccup, remembering how he would later keep it in one hand with no strain at all – and it was his right hand, which wasn't his dominant one.

**Hiccup staggers down a couple of steps under the sudden weight of the axe, still trying to defuse the situation. "I don't want to fight dragons…"**

**"Ah, come on, yes you do!" counters Stoick, and he's right – up until a few hours prior, Hiccup did want to fight dragons. It's not that he doesn't listen – it's that once he's made up his mind, changing it is a legendary feat few can perform. He gave Hiccup the chance to speak… since he didn't take it, now it's settled.**

"Oh, so that's how it works," commented Hiccup, happy to finally understand how his dad's hearing worked. "I'll be sure to remember that."

"It's either that or smashing his head with a hammer," Gobber commented as well, shaking his head at the screen's description. "Stubboick even now, I see."

"Shut up Gobber," growled Stoick. He already had trouble believing his own son was a traitor, and he knew what he'd need to do as soon as they were back on Berk, He didn't need any more teasing.

**Stepping down to the floor, Hiccup makes one final attempt. "Rephrase: Dad, I can't kill dragons."**

**Misunderstanding that for him not believing in his own skills, Stoick can't help but agree. As he is, he can't. However, he brightens up immediately. "But you will kill dragons!" he replies cheerfully, knowing that if he focused, Dragon Training would teach him how to fight those beasts regardless of his current skill level.**

Astrid frowned. Stoick had allowed Hiccup into Dragon Training, something most teens trained years to deserve, without any kind of training whatsoever? Part of her was angry he was offered such an honour. A much bigger part of her didn't consider it an honour for him any longer. The reason people trained beforehand was because Dragon Training was dangerous, very dangerous. And untrained teens could end up killed.

What had been going on in the Chief's mind to think his untrained son would be able to survive?!

Not that he hadn't, she reasoned, but still…

**Keeping the axe over his crossed hands, which is a very good way to make it much harder to be held, Hiccup continues, "No, I'm very extra sure that I won't."**

**"It's time Hiccup," states Stoick.**

**"Can you not hear me?" protests the boy, and he's right to do that. However, there's a problem.**

**Stoick is hearing him indeed… he just thinks Hiccup is afraid he won't be good enough. But with Gobber as teacher, he's sure that he will do great. After all, Gobber taught him blacksmithing, didn't he? He'll be fine.**

**"This is serious, son!" he silences him, trying to make him understand that he knows he can do it… if he can stop being so stubbornly… well… Hiccup. "When you carry this axe, you carry all of us with you. Which means you walk like us, you talk like us, you think like us. No more of… this." he says as he fixes his son's slouched posture. Hiccup is clearly not amused.**

"How is this any different from what the fat blond said?" asked a Monstrous Nightmare, curious.

"Gobber gave me a choice – no more of 'this' or no more of trying to be 'not this'," explained the boy, sighing in resignation. "Dad just said no more of 'this'."

This time all the teens frowned. Wasn't that what all parents told their children? To stop being… well, children… and start walking, talking and thinking like Vikings? And while most teens still had work to do, all of them had somehow adapted to that.

Astrid frowned, going back to her previous train of thought. Hiccup had made a choice and stuck to it. They had made a choice and stuck to it. All of them were happy with the choices they made… or were they? Come to think of it, the teens weren't happy when they were _warriors_. Snotlout enjoyed playing games, the twins liked to cause destruction, and Fishlegs loved to study dragons and plants, all things 'real' Vikings didn't do. So were they happy about their 'choice', or were they happy about the few things they could do outside of that choice?

And what her? She thought about it. She was a perfect Viking. She felt satisfaction at every well-aimed strike of her axe, at how sharp she kept it, for how good of a warrior she was. She was a Viking by heart… or was she? After all, satisfaction didn't mean happiness. When was the last time she'd been actually happy, and not just content or satisfied? She honestly couldn't say it had been in the last few years.

Had her happiness been the price she had to pay to be a Viking?

**"You just gestured to all of me," he retorts, feeling quite annoyed at being gestured at for the second time in a single day.**

**"Deal?" asks Stoick.**

**"This conversation is feeling very one-sided," Hiccup comments. Who knows, maybe his father would notice and finally let him explain more fully, for good or for ill.**

**That's not the case. "DEAL?!" Stoick repeats, louder and firmer, fed up with what he perceives as mere insecurity on his son's part.**

**It's pointless by now, and Hiccup knows it. Lowering his eyes in defeat, like an animal who had just tried to challenge the alpha and failed, he accepts, "Deal."**

**It's what Stoick wants to hear. "Good." He picks up his rucksack and heads out of the door, grabbing his helmet on the way. "Train hard, and I'll be back… probably."**

"Sooo reassuring," murmured Hiccup. "Definitely the best thing to say."

"It's the truth," Stoick replied harshly, glaring at his treacherous son.

"Yes, but you fully well know that you being Chief is the only thing that keeps people from throwing me out of the village, Mildew first and foremost," Hiccup snorted, earning shrugs of semi-agreement from some villagers. Then he sighed, saddened. "And I've already grown up without a mother… I'd like to have a father for a while still."

Vikings or not, they all still had hearts. Eyes softening, Stoick sighed. "I know, Hiccup, I wish she was here too. Maybe it was the wrong thing to say, but Vikings are usually bluntly truthful… you should know from your time with Gobber."

**Hiccup looks on as he exits the house. "And I'll be here…" he replies in kind. "Maybe?"**

Stoick turned to stare at his son, who put his hands up. "Okay, I have no excuse for that one."

**The scene changes to Gobber lifting up the gate in the Kill Ring before gesturing to the arena with his hook prosthetic. "Welcome to Dragon Training," he greets the new recruits with a smile.**

**Said recruits are shown eagerly waiting to enter. "No turning back," states Astrid… the only one who's not smiling. Seriously, what's wrong with that girl? Does she have a facial paralysis or something? Send her to Gothi!**

Laughters erupted at Astrid's description, and the girl sighed. If it kept that up, she'd be humiliated to the point of dishonour before the end of the 'movie'.

Though the screen isn't totally wrong. She does smile pretty rarely, and never when there's people who can see it.

**The view pans around to show the entire arena, first from the inside, then from above. It's grimly magnificent, the location where thousands of Vikings have learned to fight their sworn enemies with burns, blood and broken bones, just to keep them all starting with 'b'. A metallic net is spread over the top of the circular arena to prevent the dragons from escaping, and a wooden walkway surrounds it, stabilized on the rocks below. A wooden bridge leads to the road to the village.**

**"I hope I get some serious burns," comments Tuffnut. Like a Zippleback, his sister speaks up next, "I'm hoping for some mauling like, on my shoulder, or my lower back."**

"Lower back is a terrible place to be mauled, lass," Gobber scolded her. "You might even lose your ability to walk if your spine is damaged!"

"I could lose my legs?" asked Ruffnut. "Cool!"

"Let's break our spines!" added Tuffnut.

**"Yeah, it's only fun if you get a scar out of it," agrees Astrid, shrugging. It's not clear whether she's trying to be sarcastic and failing, or if she actually believes that.**

Astrid shrank slightly as her parents stared at her.

"Astrid, I don't know if you were being sarcastic or not. If you were, then you still have a long way to go before you can actually make people understand you're being sarcastic. If you weren't…" Harald's gaze hardened. "What the hell did you mean, 'it's only fun if you get a scar out of it'?! Have you spent too much time with the twins?!"

She had no answer to that. Honestly, she had just wanted to reply to the two's comments, she hadn't really been sarcastic but she hadn't really meant what she said either. It had just been an offhand comment.

**"Yeah, no kidding, right?" Hiccup walks in behind them, looking not just out of his depth, but also unimpressed with the teens' comments and with the arena as a whole. He seriously looks like he'd want to be anywhere but there. Maybe in the jaws of that Night Fury. Wouldn't be too different anyway, since he is now supposed to fight dragons without having the slightest idea how. "Pain, love it."**

**He should go easier on the sarcasm though, it's too thick. One day he'll choke on it.**

"Ha! That's what I always tell him!" exclaimed Gobber as some snicker at how Hiccup's reaction to the arena was shown.

"Hey, aren't you at least looking around to see how it is?" scowled Snotlout. "It's the killing arena!"

"I've been there on cleaning duty many times, thank you," retorted the boy, still unimpressed. "I think I'll pass on being awestruck."

"I really like that hatchling," a Zippleback head confided to the other, nevermind the fact they were one single dragon.

**"Oh, great," groans Tuffnut. "Who let him in?"**

**"Let's get started!" Gobber interrupts them as Snotlout and Ruffnut look incredulous, Astrid's frowning and Fishlegs is unsure of what to do. "The recruit who does best will win the honour of killing his first dragon in front of the entire village!" He emphasizes the word 'killing' by twisting his hook, making Hiccup flinch slightly.**

"So, is the honour in the kill or in the fact you've proven yourself a warrior?" asked a Deadly Nadder, absent-mindedly preening his scales.

"Well, the latter of course, but the former proves the latter," Fishlegs replied nervously.

**"Hiccup already killed a Night Fury, so does that disqualify him or…?" joked Snotlout, grinning. Tuffnut and Ruffnut laugh alongside him while Fishlegs smiles tentatively, trying to laugh alongside them but too nervous to do so. Astrid has no qualms about disagreeing. Her frown deepens as she turns to Snotlout before shaking her head in disapproval. Weak and untrained as he is, Hiccup is in Dragon Training, period. Insulting him won't defeat any dragon.**

Hiccup blinked. He'd always known Astrid had always been neutral toward him, but he'd though it had been in the 'pretend he doesn't exist' way, not in the 'no praise no offence' way.

**"Can I transfer out to the class with the cool Vikings?" Tuffnut jokes too, though his joke backfires as he just admitted none of them is cool – including himself.**

This time people laughed at him instead of at his joke. Snotlout frowned. "Does that mean I'm not a cool Viking?!" he grumbled, glaring at Tuffnut. However, after having moved to avoid Astrid's punches, he had also put the twins out of his own reach, so he just settled to glowering at them.

"Astrid's the best warrior of her age group," commented Hiccup, stating the obvious. "If she's not one of the 'cool Vikings', then I dread to see what a cool Viking can do. Maybe those are the ones who 'crush mountains, level forests and tame seas'."

His comment earned a lot of reluctant laughter. Reluctant because, spot on with his joke or not, he was still a traitor – people didn't laugh alongside a traitor... usually.

**"Don't worry. You're small and you're weak. That will make you less of a target," Gobber tries to comfort Hiccup, whose face goes from unimpressed to annoyed to incredulous and back to annoyed. "They will see you as sick or insane and go after the more Viking-like teens instead."**

"Actually, that's false," a Monstrous Nightmare spoke up – the same famous Nightmare who had chased Hiccup around during the raid. "We'd see him as an easy prey and aim for him first, taking him out to decrease the numbers."

"Details," Gobber waved off the complaint. "Doesn't matter."

"Of course, it's only the difference between life and death," Hiccup snarked. "Why would it matter?"

"You seriously use too much sarcasm," grumbled Toothless, shaking his head.

**Gobber chuckles and shoves him into line, making him slightly bump into Fishlegs, who gives him a worried look… worried about himself, probably. The other teens are in line too. Tuffnut looks eager, Astrid is… scowling like usual, Ruffnut looks distracted and Snotlout is trying to look cool by crossing his arms. To his credit, he's looking pretty cool and badass.**

"Yeah! Finally someone says it!" exclaimed Snotlout, punching the air in victory. "See? I'm cool and badass!"

"You've always been cool and badass, Snot," replied Tuffnut, and Ruffnut completed. "You just are so stupid people forget about that!"

The shorter but buffer teen punched them both in the face.

Astrid was starting to get annoyed at how often her facial expression was pointed out. She decided that as soon as she went back to Berk, she'd find herself a hobby.

**"Behind these doors are just a few of the many species you will learn to fight," Gobber continues, now talking to all the teens, pointing to the reinforced cage doors which are shaking, roars coming from within. "The Deadly Nadder."**

**"Speed eight, armour sixteen," Fishlegs blurts out the first statistic of the Nadder he could think of.**

"Wow, that's a lot of armour," noted Hiccup, impressed, before turning to Toothless. "I wonder what a Night Fury's stats would be."

"Probably all too high," grunted a Nightmare, slightly envious. Toothless grinned.

**"The Hideous Zippleback."**

**"Plus eleven stealth, times two."**

"Oi, who are you calling hideous!?" exclaimed a Zippleback, while the other head checked their scales if they were all okay.

A Nadder chuckled. "You of course."

"How dare you… bird with scales!"

"Two heads, half a brain!"

"One head, no brain then!"

"Will you just stop it?!" roared a Gronckle, a species not known for their beauty or vanity.

**"The Monstrous Nightmare…"**

**"Firepower fifteen," Fishlegs continues, looking more and more determined with every dragon.**

**"The Terrible Terror…"**

**"Attack eight, venom twelve!" Now Fishlegs is smiling at his own knowledge.**

**"Could you stop that?!" Gobber exclaims, exasperated. He fully well know the dragon's statistics, and the teens should too. No need to repeat them like a mantra! With a huff, he turns to the last cage, placing a hand over the handle of the door. "And… the Gronckle."**

**"Jaw strength eight," Fishlegs whispers to Hiccup, who looks at him curiously.**

**Tuffnut, Astrid and Ruffnut are all scowling, ready to fight. Snotlout, instead, breaks character and stops being cool to ask for clarification. "Whoa, whoa, wait, aren't you gonna teach us first?" he asks, a bit fearfully. Behind him, Ruffnut's eyes go round as she realizes what he means.**

"Fat chance of that happening," grinned Gobber. "You know…"

"He believes in learning on the job!" Hiccup, Stoick and Astrid said at the same time before looking at each other in shock.

"Exactly!" smiled the blacksmith. "I taught you well… expect for you Stoick."

"You didn't teach us anything," grumbled Hiccup. "You just put us in a life-or-death situation and let us work it out ourselves with a couple of tips, ready to step in if things got dangerous."

"Which is exactly how one should teach!"

**"I believe in learning on the job," Gobber smiles at him. Hiccup can definitely back up that claim. Anytime he asked Gobber to teach him, the man would just say 'take some iron, take some tools and do something. If it looks vaguely like a sword, good job'.**

People snickered at that. "Is that really what happened?" laughed Ruffnut.

"More or less," shrugged Hiccup, taking out his knife. "This was the result. I modified it a lot before it even looked like an actual knife and not… well, a blob of metal hammered down."

"I thought you tossed that away!" Toothless protested, narrowing his eyes at the knife.

"I did – I just retrieved it later," shrugged the boy, putting it away. "It's useful for cutting bread and spreading butter."

"Ah, another thing he learned from me," Gobber smiled fondly.

**Pulling the lever down, the doors are unlocked and the Gronckle charges out of the cage, ready to show why locking up a dragon is a very bad idea. The teens scatter to avoid giving it a single target.**

**"Today is about survival," Gobber introduces the lesson. "If you get blasted… you're dead." The Gronckle smashes into a wall and falls down before cheering up at the sight of some rocks nearby, which he quickly swallows.**

**"Quick, what's the first thing you're going to need?" the blacksmith quizzes his students.**

**Hiccup shrugs in panic. "A doctor?"**

"No doctor can sew you back together if you get blasted," Gobber replied cheerfully. "Wrong answer!"

"How was I supposed to know?!" the boy protested. "I make shields, I don't use them in battle!"

"Why did you specify 'in battle'?" Astrid asked, suspicious.

Hiccup froze. "Well… for some stuff I invented and needed targets?"

"Oh, so that's where all those shields went!" exclaimed Gobber. "I thought the trolls had gotten bored of stealing socks!"

**"Plus five speed?" offers Fishlegs, obviously still thinking in dragon stats. Well, if he ever found how to do that, then it'd be a correct answer. Sadly, for now it's wrong.**

**"A shield!" Cocksure, Astrid delivers the right answer as she stays in a low but mobile battle stance.**

**"Shields, go!" Gobber agrees with her, sending everyone running. Astrid and Snotlout are shown picking up shields. Then Hiccup is clumsily trying to lift his, not used to using his left hand for the job – and not used to wielding it correctly as he usually just carries them around stacked one on top of the other. Gobber comes in and helps him before sending him running. "Your most important piece of equipment is your shield. If you must make a choice between a sword or a shield, take the shield!"**

**The twins grab onto the same shield with skulls painted on it., and immediately start to argue. "Get your hands off my shield!" "There are like a million shields!" "Take that one, it has flowers, girls like flowers."**

**Ruffnut replies to that one by ripping the shield out of his hands and banging it on his head before handing it back. "Oops, now this one has blood on it."**

The twin's parents groaned in misery. Why couldn't their children be a little less idiotic? Was it really too much to ask for?

"Well, always better than Useless, he couldn't even lift a shield," Snotlout mocked, happy to notice that Stoick didn't cave his head in with his hammer.

"At least I wasn't scared shitless when Gobber released the dragon," snorted Hiccup. After almost dying by angry Night Fury, few things could shake him any longer. "Besides, it wasn't a problem of weight, but of how to grab it."

"There's literally a handle," Astrid noted with a raised eyebrow.

"Well, excuse me for making them and not knowing how they're used!" Hiccup threw his hands in the air in defeat.

**The dragon, maybe irritated by their banter, shoots a blast at the shield, taking out both of them at the same time. They spin from the hit and fall down. "Tuffnut, Ruffnut, you're out!" Gobber calls out at them.**

"Serves them right for behaving like idiots," mumbled Snotlout, glaring at the twins.

**"What?" moans Tuffnut, stunned, followed by Ruffnut's "What?"**

**"Those shields are good for another thing. Noise." The scene shows the Gronckle hovering in the air, out of reach from the teens. "Make lots of it to throw off a dragon's aim."**

**The teens start banging their weapons against their shields, visibly stunning the Gronckle.**

**Suddenly from the dragon's point of view, the teens are blurred figures, hard to define. It seems to focus on Astrid though.**

"Wait, if you go after the sick and insane, why are you pointing at the most dangerous recruit?" Hiccup asked the Gronckle.

The dragon shrugged. "It was my first time seeing you hatchlings, and to be honest, the girl may scowl a lot but she's just as scrawny as you are. Good target in my opinion."

Astrid frowned and crossed her arms. Just because she was lean, it didn't mean she wasn't skilled! The words escaped her mouth before she could stop them. "So if you saw a Night Fury, you'd believe it weak because it's smaller than a Monstrous Nightmare?"

A Deadly Nadder, Evergreen, shook his spike-crowned head. "No, because we know Night Furies are incredibly dangerous despite their size. But if we saw an unknown dragon smaller than the rest yes, we'd probably believe it weaker."

**"Every dragon has a shot limit. How many does a Gronckle have?" asked Gobber as the teens circled the dragon, never remaining still for long. Fishlegs screams as he runs by.**

**"Five?" Snotlout guessed uncertainly.**

**"No, six!" exclaimed Fishlegs.**

"And that's why you should read the Book of Dragons," the bigger boy remarked to the other.

**"Right, six! That's one for each of you!" The dragon, not appreciating his secrets being revealed, shoots the shield right off Fishlegs's hand and into the wall, charring it. "Fishlegs, out," Gobber's bored voice accompanies Fishlegs's shrill screams as he runs away.**

"And that's why you _shouldn't_ read the Book of Dragons," Snotlout shot back with a smug grin.

"What does reading have to do with my aim?" Meatlug asked, confused.

"It just does," Snotlout stood by what he said, no matter how little sense it made.

**Hiccup is hiding behind a weapon's rack. "Hiccup, get in there!" Gobber calls to him, making him hesitantly walk out before a blast hits the wall right next to him, making him go back to hiding.**

"Before you say anything, Gobber, that lesson was about survival, not fighting," Hiccup pointed out.

"Aye, but you won't always find hiding spots in battle. That was meant to practise your dodging skills," replied his mentor, scratching his chin. "Though I'll admit, I didn't _say_ that, I just meant it."

"So what? He's scared, so he passes?" Snotlout bristled.

"Fear is a good emotion, lad," replied the blacksmith. "Courage is not not being afraid, but fighting back fear. Without fear, you wouldn't be afraid of throwing yourself off a cliff, and you'd be just like the twins!"

**The Gronckle looks around, spotting Astrid and Snotlout on the other side of the ring. Astrid is half-crouched and ready to spring. Snotlout… not so much. "So anyway, I'm moving into my parents' basement. You should come by to work out, you look like you work out."**

**He turns to follow Astrid -who is rolling away- with his eyes, not focusing on the Gronckle, who blasts his shield off his arm and him off his feet. "Snotlout, out."**

"Strike!" Meatlug exclaimed cheerfully, earning laughs from the dragons as well as snickers from the teens and a quiet one from Gobber.

"Pay attention, son," Spitelout scolded him. "The battlefield is not the time for flirting."

"Hear hear who's talking," snorted Gobber, earning himself a scowl from the man. "Aye, I'm talking about you!"

**Astrid comes to a stop in front of Hiccup, who was at least tense for the fight. However, the distraction is enough, as he breaks stance to at least try to talk with her – why, it must be one of three reasons. First and least probable, to flirt in his own way, though he doesn't have the confidence to talk with her normally, much less flirt. Two, to make a sarcastic remark, but he doesn't so no. Three, to diffuse a bit the situation by making relaxing small talk. Probably no. It'll never be known why he did that. "So, I guess it's just you and me?"**

**"No. Just you," she replies, eyes widening as she sees the Gronckle ready to shoot. She darts past Hiccup, who yelps and raises his shield – just in time. The hit meant for his head instead blasts the shield right off his hand.**

"And what's _his_ excuse?" Snotlout asked arrogantly.

"For one, Astrid is taller than him and was between him and the dragon. He might've believed that as long as Astrid stood still, the dragon wasn't gonna fire. Two, the moment she dodged the dragon had presumably just shot, which meant he had no time to dodge," Spitelout replied, not because he wanted to defend Hiccup, but because if he didn't Snotlout would think he could be excused for his mistake. "And besides, he's an untrained weakling, you should be a warrior!"

Snotlout grumbled in protest. "It's not fair! He was just lucky! He was hiding like a coward!"

Astrid sighed. Sometimes she wished she wasn't attractive. It could seriously lead to the death of some people if that continued. At least Hiccup had been fast enough to raise his shield, or his head would've been blasted clean off.

**Somehow managing to stay on his feet, Hiccup runs after his shield. Gobber still hasn't called him out, so he tries to at least get back his only defence. The Gronckle ignores Astrid as it charges after Hiccup, backing him up against the wall even as Gobber calls his name in distress from the other side of the ring.**

**The Gronckle sniffs him for a second before preparing to blast the panting teen. Gobber's hook peeks out from the right and forces its head up at the last moment while Hiccup covers his head with his arms. The blast hits the wall, scorching it, but leaves the teen unharmed.**

Stoick sighed in relief at seeing his son now safe, before turning to scowl at Gobber. "I told you I knew that."

Gobber could only shrug helplessly.

Astrid, however, had a question. And for the first time, she had a question she needed to ask directly to a dragon. She looked at the Gronckle who had cheered when Snotlout had been out, guessing that was the one from the ring. "Why did you try to kill Hiccup?" she asked, steeling his voice to get rid of the hesitation of talking to a beast.

"What do you mean, lass?" asked Gobber, confused. "It's a dragon."

"It's a caged dragon that's been there for a long time since only the Nightmare gets killed by the end of the training," she replied tensely. "Which means it must know that if it kills one of the recruits, it's gonna be punished or even killed, by seeing what happened to other dragons when they hurt the recruits. And this is proved by the fact that it only ever aimed to the shields despite having clear shots. Except for that one final strike." She turned back to the dragon. "So why did you try to kill him?"

Meatlug looked impressed, or as impressed as a dragon could look. "I never thought you'd notice that," she noted. "Well, it's because the night before I heard the cry of the Night Fury, and then I smelled Night Fury on him. I guessed he had killed him, so I wanted to avenge his death… even if I knew I'd be punished for it. At least I'd kill the Viking who managed to kill a Night Fury."

Toothless snorted. "Overprotective mama bear," he rolled his eyes.

The Vikings, meanwhile, were shocked by the dragon's reasoning. While they could understand why it never killed the recruits, the protectiveness was unheard of.

Satisfied, Astrid nodded and turned back to the screen.

**"And that's six!" Gobber states as he wrestled with the hovering Gronckle, spinning it around and tossing it into the cage. "Go back to bed, you overgrown sausage!"**

"Hey!"

"Well, your kind does look… sausage-y," commented a Nadder, Skyblaze, before being blasted on her back by Meatlug.

"I take offence in that!"

**Gobber locks the door and walks toward the rest of the teen. "You'll get another chance, don't you worry," he states. It's unknown whether he's addressing the teens, or the dragons.**

**Speaking of the teens, Ruffnut and Tuffnut look tired, but fine. Snotlout is doubled over and Fishlegs is leaning on him as he catches his breath. Astrid is the only one still upright – but even she is panting slightly. "Remember, a dragon will always, always go for the kill." He turns to Hiccup, still cowering near the wall, as he finishes the sentence. He lifts him up and then hobbles away.**

**Hiccup, still shocked by the near-death experience, glances at the burn mark in the wall before a pensive expression takes over his face.**

"No… oh no… oh dear Odin's underpants don't do what I think you're about to do!" Gobber exclaimed, figuring out that the teen had begun to doubt his teachings already.

A few others figured it out too, but most just looked clueless. Toothless laughed in his own way at Hiccup, who stuck his tongue out at him. "Shut up, bud. You were just as wary of Vikings back then."

"True," the dragon conceded with a smirk.

**The scene changes to Hiccup kneeling near the now-sliced bolas that had once held the Night Fury. He picks up one and weighs it in his hands. "So… why didn't you?"**

Gobber groaned. There he went, already doubting his teachings. Then a sudden thought struck him and he glanced at where boy and dragon sat, both perfectly comfortable with each other. He groaned again, even more miserably. The boy hadn't just spared the dragon. He'd gotten to know it too!

**Thoughtful, Hiccup heads off in the direction he'd last seen the Night Fury go. As he jumps over a log, the scene changes to him jumping down into a crevice, walking into the hole in the rocks and ducking to avoid hitting his head against a tree root.**

"You went to look for a furious Night Fury?!" Snotlout practically screeched, eyes bulging as he looked at the wall. "What is wrong with you?!"

"Hey, I just had my world turned over, I wanted answers!" Hiccup protested heatedly, crossing his arms.

Astrid shook her head. It was official. Hiccup was, at the same time, the bravest and the craziest Viking to have ever lived. One didn't just go looking for a _Night Fury_ because 'he wanted answers'. That was just asking to be blasted.

**The hole leads into a beautiful cove full of grass and with a lake taking up most of it. The chirping of the birds highlight how wonderful it is. However, there is no trace of the dragon, and as the view pans back to Hiccup's face, he sighs in disappointment. "Well, this was stupid."**

"Yes, yes, and very much yes," nodded Gobber.

Astrid didn't really know what to feel. On one hand, that dragon could blast him to ashes. On the other, it hadn't even when it could've and had every reason to do so. She couldn't wrap her head around it.

**Suddenly, he notices some black scales as large as his palm laying on the ground. He crouches and picks up one, caressing it with his right hand. Without warning, the Night Fury blasts past him and up the walls, clawing at the walls to try and escape, but to no avail. He throws himself back in fright, watching in amazement as the dragon fell back down before gliding away.**

Most gasped or shrieked at the sudden appearance of the dragon. Hiccup chuckled at that. Who knew how long it'd take for them to stop doing that.

**His shock turns into wonder as he quickly looks around for a place to hide in. He finds some rocks not too far from where he is and crouches to observe the dragon, his fear replaced by curiosity. The Night Fury tries to fly again, but it falls down, unable to go higher. Again and again it tries, and Hiccup suddenly has an idea. He takes out his notebook and quickly sketches the drawing of the Night Fury.**

"Nice drawing," Astrid praised, impressed by the drawing made in a handful of seconds. He blushed at the praise and stammered something vaguely resembling a thank you.

"Ha, I could've done better!" Snotlout boasted from where he was hiding behind Fishlegs.

**Observing dragon and drawing alike, he wonders, "Why don't you just… fly away?" As he looks again, he spots the problem and modifies the drawing accordingly, erasing one of the tailfins. The fall or the bola must've crippled it. Now it's unable to fly. In frustration, the Night Fury blasts the ground.**

The dragons all gasped, while the Vikings cheered. "A downed dragon is a dead dragon," Stoick stated darkly.

Hiccup smirked. "Not for long," he murmured to his dragon, rubbing his head.

Astrid was surprised to feel a twinge of sadness and sympathy for the dragon. She had been trained to fight them, not to murder them, and that beast was as magnificent as it was dangerous. And… it had also spared Hiccup's life, she could not forget that. That mercy deserved to be repaid.

**The dragon tries again, but to no avail as it crashes harshly. Weakened, it closes its eyes until it hears fish swimming in the lake. Its interest peaking, it drags itself over to the water and snaps at the fishes, but it fails to catch any. Sorrow painted on its snout, the dragon crouches on the ground.**

Astrid's sympathy rose again, and some other Vikings found themselves pitying the proud beast. Fishlegs was openly looking sad for the dragon.

Stoick didn't waver, and they all knew why. The dragons had taken his wife from him, which had led him to alienating his son in his inability to understand him, which had in turn led to all sorts of disasters and sorrows. All of that he blamed on the dragons, and more. Seeing one suffer wouldn't move him anytime soon.

Hiccup frowned, saddened as well, though he knew he had somehow fixed that later.

**Hiccup looks saddened by the proud beast's weakness, and his distraction allows his charcoal stick to slip from his hand and fall down, tinkling all the way. Hearing it, the dragon lifts its head and spots the boy, making him freeze and hold his breath.**

Astrid tensed. That was it. The dragon had repaid Hiccup's mercy by sparing him. Now that the debt had been settled, it had no reason not to attack him. If it chose not to kill him, then she'd have to admit dragons, or at least that dragon, was nowhere nearly as evil as she'd thought. It was a scary thought.

She glanced at Hiccup. Was that how he'd felt? That his world was crumbling beneath him, that everything he'd ever been told was wrong? And she wasn't even experiencing it directly!

Hiccup was truly something. She smiled and shook her head, uncaring if someone saw her. A Viking didn't sympathize with dragons, and she just had. If she couldn't be a full Viking, she could allow herself some more leeway in other fields as well.

**Hiccup first cringes, but he still looks nowhere near as fearful as he should be. His belief in the dragon's evilness has wavered already and is ready to fall. They exchange a long, profound stare… one Hiccup has never experienced with any Viking. For the first time, someone sees HIM, and it's a dragon. He doesn't know what to make of it, even less so when he tilts his head and the dragon does the same to keep eye contact straight.**

Many Vikings winced at how bluntly the 'movie' described how they never took time to learn who Hiccup actually was, instead of seeing him only as the illusions of him they made themselves.

Astrid was the one struck harder. Not only the dragon had just proved not to be evil… it just proved it was more empathic than any Viking.

No… she couldn't call the dragon an 'it' any longer. Not when the Night Fury showed emotions and empathy beyond what most Vikings were capable of. She had to admit it, that dragon had to be called 'he'.

**Unbeknownst to him, the dragon is thinking the same. For a second, it's like a mirror of the soul – two fraternal souls in different bodies. But it will take time to see that more clearly.**

**For now, they ain't killing each other yet.**

Astrid heaved a heavy sigh. She'd done it. She'd committed treason, if only in her mind. She doubted the fact that all dragons were evil, and she referred to one as a 'he'. All her training to become a Viking, wasted. Or… was it? She sneaked a glance over to Hiccup. He seemed calm and relaxed, something she'd never seen him as among Vikings, and the 'movie' had just proven that. Not only that, he looked pretty happy with his dragon.

She thought back to when she'd snapped at him after the Nadder accident in the ring, letting out her frustration on the wrong person who was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. She'd told him to figure out which side he was on.

He wasn't on the Viking side, that much was clear, and he still wasn't welcome among the dragons. So… he was neither. _'No,'_ she disagreed with herself. _'Think like Hiccup. What would he say?'_ He'd have probably said he wasn't on neither side since he was sitting right between them… oh dear Freya.

Eyes widening in realization, she got her answer. Hiccup had chosen a side – he'd chosen both. He hadn't tried to befriend the dragons after being shunned by the Vikings. He was just… waiting, and joking with both sides.

He was, effectively, on both sides.

Was it even possible? She shook her head. That was Hiccup, of course he would think of something as crazy as that.

**The scene changes to Hiccup outside the Mead Hall, soaked to the bone under the thunderstorm, as he climbs up the steps. Gobber's voice comes from within and continues as the scene shifts to him nearing the teens' table. "Alright, where did Astrid go wrong in the ring today?"**

"Oh, here we go," groaned Ruffnut. Astrid glared at her. "What? You think it's fun to hear you being your usual perfect-y Ms Perfect-y? You are with fighting like Fishlegs is with dragons!"

"That's not true!" protested the other girl. "We _need_ to learn how to fight accurately!"

"The lass's not wrong, Astrid," her father Harald Hofferson interjected. "Fighting is a lot about instinct. Experience comes with time. Fighting accurately only works if you have time. Otherwise, your body has to move on its own."

"And that's why I'll never be a fighter," Hiccup stage-whispered to Toothless. "My body would probably tangled itself in my own limbs, somehow."

"Mmh, I don't know…" smirked the Night Fury. "Maybe you'd automatically start using that sarcasm of yours to snark your enemies to death."

"Oh ha ha, very funny," pouted the boy, earning a snigger from the dragon. "Stupid overgrown lizard…"

**"I mistimed my somersault dive. It was sloppy. It threw off my reverse tumble," Astrid replies immediately.**

"Yeah, I'm sure we _all_ noticed that," Hiccup rolled his eyes at the minute detail.

"That's what I told her!" exclaimed Ruffnut, happy someone finally got it.

"You're just jealous my Astrid is so skilled," Snotlout bragged before the blunt edge of an axe sent him to the ground.

"Don't make me use the sharp side," the girl threatened, disgusted at being called 'his'.

**"Yeah, we noticed," Ruffnut comments sarcastically.**

**"No, no, you were great, that was so 'Astrid'," Snotlout, ever the suck-up, tries to butter her up, which only leads her to roll her eyes.**

**Hiccup approaches the table and the teens notice him. Ruffnut and Tuffnut don't react much beside glancing at him. Snotlout frowns in distaste while Fishlegs just glances at him in what? Try and guess… uncertainty! Yeah, that boy never looks sure of what he's doing. Astrid glances at him, much like the twins, but seems to frown after a second – whether it's at Hiccup or because Snotlout is purposefully preventing the boy from taking a seat at their table. Or maybe it's at Hiccup because of his attempt to flirt in the ring that day – maybe she doesn't want another Snotlout after her.**

Hiccup winced. Yeah, that had not been his proudest moment, not even close. Though, in his defence, when was he supposed to approach her? She was a warrior, so during a fight she'd be in her natural environment!

No, okay, those excuses sounded weak even to him.

Astrid, instead, tried to recall why she was frowning – or what like the 'movie' had said, she scowled for no apparent reason? She came up with nothing.

Snotlout grinned. In his mind, that had been pure genius. That table was for the cool Vikings, not for runty weaklings like Useless.

**"Where did Hiccup go wrong?" Gobber asked the teens, hoping for them not to fall back in their usual bullying of the boy – in vain, unfortunately.**

**Snotlout smiles unpleasantly at the boy, reminding him he has no place amongst them. Hiccups rolls his eyes and grabs a plate of chicken before leaning over behind Snotlout's back and grabbing a mug before the buffer boy can stop him. Then, without further prompting, he walks away to another table. Not like he wanted to sit with them anyway.**

**"Uh, he showed up?" Ruffnut offers with a fake thoughtful frown.**

**"He didn't get eaten?" snickered Tuffnut, eyeing the boy with a mean grin.**

**"He's never where he should be," Astrid states firmly and a little aggressively, following the boy with her eyes – and this time it's clear, she's definitely frowning at him.**

Astrid felt a little bad, but only a little. True, Hiccup _had_ flirted with her or so she thought, but only once, and he'd stopped as soon as he hadn't gotten a positive reaction. Maybe she'd been too quick to see him as a second Snotlout. She had soon lost that illusion when he never showed any further interest in her as time passed, but then she'd found other reasons to be angry at him.

She made a point to at least try and apologize before the 'movie' was over. She didn't even realize she wanted to apologize to a traitor.

**Hiccup doesn't even seem aware of the insults as he sits down and starts poking at his food.**

**"Thank you Astrid," Gobber stresses the words 'thank you' by smacking both twins in the head as he passes. "You need to breathe and live this stuff." He takes out a large book from Thor knows where, and it's better not to know since it was waist-level, and clears the table of plates before throwing the book on it. "The Dragon Manual. Everything we know about every dragon we know of."**

**Thunder rumbles and Gobber looks up thoughtfully. With the rain, no dragon would even come to raid as they wouldn't be able to use their fire, their main weapon. "No attacks tonight. Study up."**

**"Wait," says Tuffnut, shocked. "You mean… read?"**

**"While we're still alive?" Ruffnut continues, just as shocked by the unfairness of it all. Astrid first raises an eyebrow at the two, then shakes her head in disapproval and returns to her food.**

"Why, you want to read it when you're dead?" Gobber asked, confused. "It won't help you in Valhalla if you get killed by a dragon because you haven't read that book."

Fishlegs sighed. It was impossible to get Viking teens to read any kind of book, much less one they actually needed to read.

Astrid instead noticed just how distasteful she acted with everyone. It was like she oozed disdain or dislike every time someone said or did even just the smallest thing that she didn't like. Was she really like that? Was she really being nitpicky whenever it came to do things right, like Ruffnut had said?

She thought back to her thoughts about her happiness. Being a Viking required her to be harsh, blunt, and unfeeling. She had to frown upon games and stupid jokes like those, and she had to avoid useless 'hobbies' in favour of training to fight.

Was all that skill really worth it? Sure, it would keep her alive, but would it keep her happy?

And besides, no other Berkian was as strict as she was. Not even close.

She found a word for what she was – obsessed. And she knew why. Ever since her uncle Finn had disgraced her family's honour, she had been obsessed with becoming skilled enough to kill the Flightmare… but was it really worth it any longer?

Did she really have to ruin her life just for honour?

She glanced at Hiccup. Hiccup had had no qualms about giving up fame and honour beyond comprehension to do what he thought was right when he freed that Night Fury. He'd prioritized himself over people's view of him. As long as he'd been alone, that had made him miserable. But now that he was with that dragon, just one single dragon who accepted him for who he was, he looked the happiest she'd ever seen him.

Maybe that was the way to go.

She realized that yes, it probably was.

**"Why read words when you can just kill stuff the words tell you stuff about?" Snotlout protests, showcasing one of the best syntaxes in the whole Viking world, able to construct such a complex sentence without messing it up. He looked positively affronted at having to read.**

Snotlout glowed at the praise. Even if it wasn't about his 'good looks' or about his strength or his fighting skills, it was still a compliment.

**"Oh, I've read it like, seven times!" Fishlegs exclaims enthusiastically. "There's this water dragon that sprays boiling water at your face!" As he speaks, Snotlout turns to him with a horrified expression, as if he'd just turned into a particularly disgusting squashed crab.**

Everyone laughed at Snotlout's expression while Fishlegs sighed dejectedly. Not like anyone would ever listen to him listing off dragons and their capabilities. Even Hiccup had told him to shut up when they were fighting the Zippleback… though maybe he'd had a point at the time.

"You should read that book, Snotlout," Spitelout scolded his son. "Every Viking has read it at least once. It may be boring and it may not look like it's gonna help you, but it will – especially if you come to face with a species you haven't trained against."

**"And there's this other one, that buries itself for like a week-" He can't go on any further as Tuffnut waves a hand before his face to interrupt him.**

**"Yeah, that sounds great." He's sarcastic, of course. He leans back on his seat to emphasize just how little he cares. "There was a chance I was gonna read that…"**

**"But, now…" Ruffnut trails off, both twins conveying how unimpressed they are by raising their eyebrows at him.**

**"You guys read, I'll go kill stuff," Snotlout states as he stands up, twins and Fishlegs scrambling after him. For a second, Astrid seems to slump, for some reason – either more disapproval, sudden loneliness, or relief they finally brought their argument away from her. Fishlegs's voice trails off as the teens exit the door.**

"None of you remained?!" Stoick boomed, outraged. "Gobber, your mentor, told you to read it! That was an order just like the ones he gave in the ring! You were supposed to follow it, not walk away without a care!"

"Well, to be honest, it's not like we _needed_ to read it right away," Tuffnut replied, still unimpressed despite slightly cowed by the chief's anger. "We could've read it later."

"Did you?" asked Gobber, somehow doubting it.

"Well no," shrugged Ruffnut. "But we could've. It matters."

**Hiccup gets up from his own tables and walks over to the teens'. "So, I guess we'll share-" he can't even finish the question mark in his question that Astrid pushes the book over to him and gets up without a second glance.**

**"Read it." It kind of sounds like an order. Ironic, since she had been told to read it too and she hadn't.**

**"Yeah…" He definitely didn't appreciate that. "All mine then. So, I guess I'll see you-" The door is slammed closed. She hasn't even listened to what he's been saying. Kinda like his dad. "…tomorrow." He sighs. It's gonna be a long night.**

"Before any of you starts criticizing me, I read that book already," she firmly stated as soon as the 'movie' showed her getting up. Then she turned to Hiccup and apologized, "As for you, after what happened in the ring I thought you were gonna hit on me all night long, so I treated you like I would've treated Snotlout in that situation."

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Wow, you know me so well," he snarked. He knew it was pathetic to try and hide how it had actually hurt to be so obviously and carelessly shunned by the others, but it had become a habit for him – and old habits died hard. Survival instincts died even harder, at least when it came to social interactions with Vikings.

Sarcasm or not, the words hit a nerve in Astrid – which meant that they hurt far more than they had any right to. He was sitting so casually beside a dragon and treated him like his best friend -which he probably was-, yet he thought… no, he _knew_ that she, someone he'd basically grown up in the same village as, didn't know the first thing about Hiccup.

Which… now that she thought of it, wasn't true. What was true was that she'd always seen only the surface and only what other people saw, but she had subconsciously noticed a lot more things about the boy. She just had to act like Hiccup and look deeper instead of being satisfied with what the people said about him.

Just from the inventions he made and the lectures he got about them, she could tell he was inventive, inhumanly skilled at craftsmanship, stubborn to a fault and brave, incredibly so. Facing dragons and facing the disappointment of the village took two different kinds of courage, and she wasn't sure the former mattered more. She also knew she didn't have the latter.

He was also intelligent, almost frustratingly so. All that sarcasm had to base off something to come out. He was lonely, but he lived with it.

He was merciful, like he'd shown when he hadn't been able to kill that dragon after seeing he was a living being just like himself. And he was too curious for his own good, as he proved when he went after the deadliest dragon alive just to prove his theory.

She was almost tempted to say he wasn't much in the physical capabilities department, but then she restrained from taking what she saw for granted and looked deeper. She… was honestly surprised by what so obvious under a thin veil of illusions. Hiccup had run around like everyone else in the ring, carried axe and shield always raised without any sign of strain whatsoever, and in the end he was panting out of fright, as his breath evened out the moment he turned thoughtful. Aside from her, the others had basically been doubled over. He was fast, definitely not 'weak' and hardier than anyone thought.

He also proved himself to be a very good tracker. Not many people could follow a _flying_ creature in the woods so easily – and she could tell it hadn't taken him long since the light hadn't changed at all.

Finally, his aim had to be inhuman, to be able to hit a _Night Fury_, in total darkness, from such a distance.

She could easily think of his flaws too. He was stubborn, reckless to the point she could call him suicidal, had no respect for the Viking ways, he was clumsy and introverted and shy and stuttered often. His inventions, as creative as they were, were often if not always dangerous and caused a lot of destruction in the village. And his confidence was a _mess…_ though after going over to his dragon, that had improved a lot.

And did she mention that he was really cute? And the best-looking of all the available choices in the village? Sure, he wasn't all that handsome, but his messy auburn hair and his expressive green eyes and all those freckles were really cute. Not that she'd ever tell that to his face… maybe. It would depend on the situation, probably.

Damn. There went months, if not years, of carefully built denial. Now that she thought of it, maybe she really did have a crush on him.

_**Some explanations are in order.**_

_**One, why the Vikings didn't treat Hiccup as... well, a traitor? I always thought most other reaction fics exaggerated it, so I looked into how they treat Alvin, Dagur, Viggo, Ryker, Krogan, Johann, Drago and Grimmel, all their human enemies thorough movies and series. And I realized - they treat them as enemies, sure, but they are not above talking with them like normal people. They just also fight them. Most of the time, they are not insulting or spitting on their name like dirt. And believe me - after what Drago and Grimmel did, they had every reason to.**_

_**Second and more important - Astrid. As you can see, this Astrid is vastly different from all the others I've seen in this kind of story. In the movie, she's the first to understand - why would it be different here? Not only that, but Toothless is CLEARLY not a mindless beast, so why most fics make them so damn hard-headed, only for it to change as soon as their movies counterpart do? Astrid was the first to understand, and forever more Hiccup's closest human friend, so why shouldn't she be thinking about it and being convinced?**_

_**Besides, she does say something like that in the 3rd movie. And admits she just never said it out loud.**_

_**Sue me, I love Hiccstrid and I know most of you do too.**_

_**Until next time,**_

_**Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh**_


	5. This is for Changing my Mind

**_Little headnote. A few people commented how the watching group shouldn't be able to 'read' the bold text since they are supposed to be seeing the movie. They know the words as if someone was narrating them in their heads (magic). Like, while you are reading this, in your head you are replaying the movie. For them, it's the opposite - while they are 'watching the movie', in their heads it's being narrated._**

**_Does this make sense? If not, it's magic, and yes they know what's on the screen. No biggie._**

/-/ _Begin Story_ /-/

No one tried to comment on how the teens had just abandoned Hiccup, and how he acted as if that was a common occurrence. No… that wasn't right, because that'd mean he tried often and was shunned. Instead, he acted like he'd deep down expected it. Because, to be bluntly honest, he had. He'd never illuded himself into thinking that he would be accepted by them just because he had gotten into Dragon Training.

**The view slowly changes from a lit Mead Hall with few Vikings, to a deserted and dark Mead Hall with only Hiccup in it, holding a candle to give himself some light to read.**

"You shouldn't keep flames near old books, they are very flammable, and that book is the most valuable of them all!" Fishlegs squealed in worry for the book.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "The book is fine, 'Legs. Not even a tiny little burn mark. I treated it well."

Toothless felt compelled to add, "Or at least, way better than people usually treated him, and he's supposed to be a person, not just a pile of written paper, so I don't think the book had anything to complain about."

A few Vikings grumbled something about failed inventions and burning houses, but they felt like weak excuses. Stoick himself sighed. He'd tried to shove Hiccup into the Viking way by harshness, true, but because he had never thought there could be another way. And for all he knew, there still wasn't. One dragon was still just one dragon. Even if that Night Fury acted friendly toward Hiccup, the other dragons couldn't be trusted so easily.

Fishlegs withered under the dragon's judgemental stare, whimpering in fear until the dragon finally looked away. Tuffnut and Ruffnut looked unapologetic, though they had been the ones who thought Hiccup was cool for destroying the village. Snotlout cowered before the Night Fury's gaze, but didn't say anything to apologize. And then the dragon looked at her.

And Astrid was thrown for a loop.

She'd never thought a dragon could be so expressive with just his eyes, but she _felt_ he was almost daring her. Daring her to do what, exactly, she didn't know, but there was a clear challenge in those eyes. When he looked at her, then Hiccup, then back at her, she guessed he dared her to see that Hiccup was in the right.

She knew he was right already. She just didn't know if she was ready to face the consequences of such thinking.

**The storm rages outside as Hiccup sits down at the teens' former table and opens the book, beginning to read out loud. "Dragons' Classifications. Strike class. Fear class. Mystery class."**

"Also Stoker, Sharp, Tidal and Boulder class!" Fishlegs exclaimed, unable to help himself. Then he shrunk back on the floor when the dragons looked at him with wonder while the Vikings with annoyance. "Sorry…"

"You've classified all of us?" wondered a Monstrous Nightmare.

Fishlegs nodded excitedly. "Yes. Each class has a lead example that also makes up it's class symbol. The Strike class has the Night Fury, even though there's no symbol for that since we don't know how a Night Fury looked like until recently. The Sharp class is the Deadly Nadder. Fear class is the Hideous Zippleback. Stoker class is the Monstrous Nightmare. Tidal is the Scauldron, while Boulder is the Gronckle. Mystery are all dragons that are either not any of the above, or that still haven't been studied enough to be classified, and whose logo is the Changewing."

"Interesting, and what does each of these class represent?" asked Meatlug, impressed.

"Well-"

"Oh shut up, Fishlegs, I'm not gonna listen to you explaining our classifications to _dragons_," Snotlout spat, ending the surprisingly friendly conversation. The dragons glared at him while Fishlegs seemed to realize he'd been giving information about what they knew to their enemies, and shut up immediately.

**Hiccup turns the page to look at the next dragon, one that looks to be made of a mouth with wings and tail. "Thunderdrum. This reclusive dragon inhabits sea caves and dark tide pools." Looking down, there is a drawing of a rocky shore and the details of the Thunderdrum's spiked tail. "When startled, the Thunderdrum produces a concussive sound that can kill a man at close range." The next image is a Thunderdrum screaming a Viking's head right off, and then a fierce-looking Viking is shown piercing a Thunderdrum's neck. "Extremely dangerous, kill on sight."**

The dragons exchanged glances. While strong, a Thunderdrum needed to get close to harm. They could all destroy houses and kill people from afar. If a Thunderdrum was labelled as 'extremely dangerous', what would they be labelled as? More importantly… would they be to 'kill on sight' as well?

Astrid was the only one who noticed a detail in the book. _'When startled…'_ she repeated in her mind. Which meant that when not startled, it would not do it. It was a weak example and she knew it, but just the fact it was in the Book of Dragons made it way more important.

Frowning, she wondered if it would be so aggressive if it were to be approached calmly. Maybe it would. Maybe it wouldn't.

**Hiccup turns another page. "Timberjack." The image is of a dragon with huge, pointy wings and a small head with a lizard-like body, but without the forepaws. "This gigantic creature has razor-sharp wings that can slice through full-grown trees." The next image is a Timberjack cutting down a row of trees. Then Hiccup is shown reading aloud, first a little fearful, then frowning, "Extremely dangerous, kill on sight."**

The dragons could give them that, a Timberjack was more dangerous than a Thunderdrum. It made sense for them to be labelled as such. They could kill even without meaning to, if they weren't careful. Sometimes even other dragons or Timberjacks. No one really knew how they could mate with those wings of theirs.

Fishlegs was still grinning.

Astrid, instead, wasn't smiling. She waited for the rest to be read, though she still wondered if Bork had really studied the dragons, or if he'd just killed them or observed them fight. Did anyone even know if dragons could eat something that wasn't meat or fish, like fruits?

Well… Hiccup might've.

**"Scauldron." New page, new dragon. This one has a large body with a long neck, and a large bag under its mouth to store the water to heat up. It is also shown in another pictures, spitting water at some Vikings on a boat. "Sprays scalding water at its victims. Extremely dangerous-Ah!" Thunder rumbles and lightning flashes, but since no dragon swoops in to try and eat him, he resumes to read.**

Snotlout laughed. "Afraid a little thunderstorm?"

"I literally walked back to Berk under the heavy rain and with thunders flashing all around," Hiccup replied, annoyed. "I was startled, yes. Scared? Me? The guy who stared a furious Night Fury in the eyes and managed to hold on until he was gone before fainting? Yeah, I think it'll take a lot to scare me in the future."

Toothless grinned. "It's bath time."

"No!" Leaping away from his dragon, Hiccup backed away in terror before realizing he'd just been fooled and that the dragon was laughing. He returned to sit beside him, but not before kicking him lightly and grounding him. And since he could actually ground him for real, Toothless could only pout and grumble.

Meanwhile, Astrid mentally finished the sentence. _'Kill on sight…'_ She thought back to when she'd read that book. With the exception of one, all those dragons were to be 'killed on sight'.

Or did they really?

**A dragon similar to a sleeker Monstrous Nightmare is shown. "Changewing. Even newly hatched dragons can spray acid. Kill on sight."**

Astrid frowned. They knew hatchlings could spray acid, yet nothing about their feeding habits. The battle-obsessed mentality of the Vikings was beginning to look more and more closed-minded now that she was looking at it from an outsider's perspective.

Hiccup, having long since figured _that_ out, decided it was time for a joke. "Vikings. Strong, brave and stubborn, these creatures are almost undefeatable if in large numbers and make up one of the strongest races in the Archipelago. They can also be pretty aggressive and close-minded, though. Extremely dangerous if provoked, pacify on sight… if you can, that is."

The dragons rolled their eyes at the mostly positive description of the Vikings while the mentioned people either grumbled or scoffed at the 'pretty aggressive and close-minded' comment. Gobber was the one to vocalize it. "Oi, we ain't aggressive nor close-minded! If the dragons raid us, we defend ourselves! And if in three hundred years no dragon has ever tried to be friendly with us, it's not our fault!"

Hiccup shook his head. "I wasn't referring to what you do to the dragons."

The Vikings and the dragons were confused by that. Toothless and Astrid weren't. Toothless crooned sadly as his friend and rider, while the girl felt a shard of icy shame stab her heart. He'd meant the village's treatment toward _him_. Supposedly one of them, pushed away so harshly he eventually found a friend amongst the creatures he had been taught to fear and hate.

Only then it finally, actually clicked.

Up until then, she'd thought that Hiccup's curiosity had led him to study the dragon and eventually befriend it. And in a way, it had been so, or at least his curiosity had played a part in that. But for the most part, he had just been desperate for a friend, and that dragon had been there for him when no one else had. His village had pushed him so far away, had made it so clear they didn't think of him as one of them, that he had gone and asked the dragons to be one of theirs, and the Night Fury had accepted.

Just how sad, lonely and desperate one had to be, to even just consider trying to befriend a creature he'd grown up fearing like the Gods feared Fenrir? He'd chosen the Night Fury over the village because, in the two short interactions the two of them had had, the dragon could've harmed him and hadn't… while the village rarely missed a chance to harm him, usually with words or, in Snotlout's case, even physically.

She looked over to the boy. He had his dragon, but even then, they were only two.

She considered her options. He'd been the one to break her mentality, or at least his actions had. And after all, she'd never really been that close to the other teens. The only problem were her parents, but she was doing it for herself, not for honour, so she'd just have to ignore them.

After all, she knew what it felt to be lonely, and those two looked really lonely, not really at home in neither side.

She gathered all her courage and inhaled deeply before exhaling slowly, trying to force her worries to go out with her breath. Then she stood up and, in the suddenly silent hall, she walked over to Hiccup.

His reaction made her heart ache a bit. He actually scooted a little farther, as if afraid and really, why wouldn't he be? Before being brought in that room, she'd been nothing but envious and had made no move to hide it. Before that, she'd been harsh. Even earlier, she'd ignored him to try and deny any kind of feelings she _might've_ possibly had, too focused on becoming a proper Viking.

His dragon growled at her, clearly not liking her so close to his friend and warning her. One more step without Hiccup's permission, and she'd personally find out how all those catapults felt when they were blasted.

When he looked up at her, not in fear this time, but in plain confusion, she realized the flaw in her plan. What could she say? What should she say? It wasn't like she was good at expressing herself. In the end, she chose to go for the quickest and bluntest way she could.

"You were right, and I'm sorry." Hiccup exchanged a glance with his dragon. That hadn't been the best of ways to start, apparently. The dragon snorted, but aside a bit of smoke, made no move to pulverize her on the spot. "You were right when you didn't kill that Night Fury. And I'm sorry for hurting you for years just so I could become something I wasn't even sure I wanted to become."

Once again, the two brothers of different mothers glanced at each other, this time in utter confusion. Even the dragon had lost his aggressivity.

"Astrid, what are you doing?!" Snotlout exclaimed, worried about her safety. After all, Gobber had said it loud and clear – no one had ever seen a Night Fury and lived to tell the tale. Well, aside from Hiccup, but Astrid hadn't saved the dragon's life so she likely wouldn't be spared. "Get back here!"

Astrid ignored him. Not in her usual annoyed way, but in the way Hiccup ignored all the jeers and insults of the villagers – she didn't even acknowledge the fact he'd spoken.

Her father Harald didn't say anything, but he and his wife Greta were almost biting their nails off in worry.

"Uhh… okay?" Hiccup finally hazarded, taken aback by her sudden apology.

Remembering that he hadn't been hearing her thoughts since the start of this 'movie' thing, Astrid took a deep breath. "You've showed me that being yourself should be more important than being a Viking, and I've realized you're right. I had everything I could possibly have – honour, combat prowess, respect and company. Yet, I wasn't happy. You spat in the face of everything being a Viking is, and you are happy."

"Are you saying you think being a traitor is the way to go?" Hiccup asked, bewildered.

"I'm saying that the Viking way isn't for everyone, and that people shouldn't be forced into it. I've always been so preoccupied about being the perfect Viking that I never thought about my own happiness, only about honour and respect," she corrected him. Whoever had ever said that the first step was the hardest was a complete fool. Every word was just as difficult as the previous one. "I think that following who I am is the way to go. I don't know who I am yet. I know what I'm not, it's different. People know what you're not, but only you know who you are-"

"I know who he is," the Night Fury spoke up with a frown.

Astrid was startled for a second, having forgotten dragons had been allowed to speak, but she quickly regained her bearings before Hiccup could interrupt her as well. "And it seems like you've discovered who you truly were only after you stopped caring about fitting in. So, I'm trying to do the same." She took a deep breath at the end of that sentence. "Even if it means being a traitor, yes."

Her declaration silenced the whole hall, Vikings and dragons alike. Hiccup was gaping at her as if he'd never seen her before, and maybe that wasn't completely wrong. He'd only ever seen what she was pushing herself to be.

She almost laughed. No, of course he didn't. So used to only be looked at superficially, he probably disregarded first impressions and all that stuff and looked between the lines like she'd done for him not ten minutes prior.

Eventually, the dragon got bored of the stalemate and jerked, pushing Hiccup off of himself and onto his feet, right before her. The boy quickly blushed and began to stammer, "Oh! Er, that's… very good to hear, Astrid! N-Not like I wanted you t-to be a traitor or anything, of- of course! It's more like…"

Dragon or not, apparently Hiccup didn't do very well under pressure. She punched him in the shoulder, but without hostility, which seemed to confuse the dragon a little as he let out a crooning 'huh?'. "That's for making me become a traitor," she told Hiccup, happy to see that the awkwardness had been replaced with annoyance.

"Ouch! Hey, you did that yourself!" he protested, holding the hurting arm. "I didn't do anything!"

Oh yes, yes he did. He just didn't know that. "And that's-" She grabbed his tunic and pecked him on the cheek, stunning him into silence. "For changing my mind and letting me see how wrong I was."

Satisfied with her statement and the impression she'd left on both boy and dragon, she sat down, not too close to said dragon but still definitely close enough to be counted as on 'their side'. Speechless from the kiss, Hiccup slumped back down against his dragon before noticing his smug stare and snapping, embarrassed, "What are you looking at?!"

Vikings and dragons were stumped by her behaviour. She'd always been the perfect Viking recruit, and then she went and not just threw all that to the dragons, but also spat on her decision and called it stupid? What the hell had just happened?

The other teens, however, knew her better than most. Unlike them, Astrid had been watching the past carefully and seeing what was hidden beneath the surface. They had just thought it wouldn't really matter was was shown since the war would end either way.

Snotlout frowned. The girl he liked had just had such a huge change of heart, throwing all her honour at the sharks to 'find her happiness' or whatever she meant. If Astrid did something, chances were it was the right thing to do and she had a reason to do so.

He and all the other teens could somewhat understand why she'd apologized to Hiccup. They hadn't failed to notice that, eventually, it had been their fault a dragon had treated him better than his own village. It wasn't that much of a shock. But… the dragons were still raiders and killers. Instead of just hunting or fishing on their own, they specifically raided Berk every week or two. Maybe they weren't mindless killing machines, but surely they couldn't be counted as their friends.

Sitting beside Hiccup meant she'd changed her mind about that, or at least about the dragon laying near the boy.

The teens couldn't understand. Yes, it had shown no aggressive behaviour if not provoked, but that Night Fury had destroyed dozens of catapults, causing the dragons to get the advantage and raid and burn Berk even more. How could it be forgiven so easily?

If they could apologize to Hiccup without sitting near that Night Fury, they'd do it – except the twins who would probably ask to be blasted or something. But accepting that dragon as good? Not after all it had done.

The dragons were likewise shocked. The boy had learned of the Night Fury's mercifulness personally, but the girl hadn't been there. If anything, she looked like she was one of the fiercest dragon-haters. And yet there she was, nervously but determinedly sitting not far from the deadliest of dragons after the Red Death.

It was baffling.

**As he continues to turn the pages, he says the name of every dragon shown. "Gronckle. Zippleback. The Skrill…" Said dragon's image seems to move, widening its wings and opening its jaws. "Boneknapper…"**

"Blasted beast!" Gobber howled in rage, shaking his hook at the image. "I'll get back at you one day, and then you'll see why chasing Gobber the Belch is a bad idea!"

Stoick sighed. "Gobber, no Boneknapper is chasing you. It's just your imagination."

"No it isn't!" exclaimed the blacksmith. "I even still have what it's after!" He lifted his pants up a little to show a simple rope belt with a three-pointed bone as 'buckle'. "This stunning belt buckle."

Everyone deadpanned at the 'stunning' bone, and shook their heads in exasperation.

**The Boneknapper slightly raises its head as a low and shrill roar is heard.**

"The book never did any of that when I read it," Fishlegs whimpered fearfully, with Snotlout not looking much better.

"It was probably just the candlelight," a Gronckle, Stoneskin, suggested, though even he didn't sound all that sure about that.

Hiccup grinned. "I don't know… the candles seemed to stay pretty still…"

"Hiccup," the Night Fury scolded him. "Don't scare them any more than they already are. You don't sound so calm either."

**"Whispering… Death." He sounds fearful as he speaks its name. The serpent-like, spike-covered dragon with lots of rows of teeth is drawn with what look like soundwaves coming from its open mouth. As Hiccup watches, the image seems to stretch out its mouth a little more.**

**Then, Hiccup's voice lost all its fear and began to sound bored and annoyed. "Burns its victims. Paralyses its victims. Chokes its victims. Turns its victims inside out." The image shows three dragons similar to Monstrous Nightmares hanging upside down like bats.**

"How can you say 'turns its victims inside out' like it's nothing special?!" Ruffnut exclaimed, horrified by Hiccup's casual dismissal of such a wonderful way to kill someone. "It's so beautiful!"

"We should totally turn someone inside out sometimes," nodded Tuffnut. "But… how would we do that?"

"Simple, I shove a hand down their throat, you shove a hand up their butt, then we pull-"

"And that's more information than any of us wanted," Hoark the Haggard groaned, disgusted.

The dragons were impressed. The boy surely had some guts reading all those horrible ways to die, late a night, in a thunderstorm, without the slightest hint of fear.

**"Extremely dangerous. Extremely dangerous." A four-headed, plant-like dragon. "Kill on sight, kill on sight, kill on sight…" Ominous music builds up as other dragons are shown either killed or killing. First a Gronckle, then a Scauldron, then a Thunderdrum and finally a Zippleback, before he lands on a mostly blank page, with no drawing whatsoever. "Night Fury…"**

Fishlegs shivered at the ominous music. Had all that happened to him, he wouldn't have read the Book even once.

Gobber glanced between the screen and the real dragon. Maybe it was time someone updated that book.

**"Size, unknown. Speed, unknown." Reverent fear is clear in Hiccup's voice. "The unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Never engage this dragon… your only chance: hide and pray it does not find you."**

Suddenly, the dragons knew why so many Vikings had fainted when the Night Fury had roared in Hiccup's face. To the dragons, the Night Fury was immensely strong and respected, but to the Vikings? It was a ghost legend no man could face, much less fight, without losing their life in vain.

All Vikings shivered, but then they gathered themselves. The Night Fury had turned out to be less intimidating than they'd thought. It was still absurdly dangerous, but it wasn't invincible in their eyes any longer.

Astrid wondered just how little people had actually tried to learn about dragons before writing that book. The dragon was dangerous, sure, incredibly so, but it showed no aggressive behaviour without it being justified.

The other teens glanced at the Night Fury. Didn't look so dangerous to them any longer.

On his part, Toothless was in equal parts amused and flattered by such a description.

**Thoughtfully, he takes out his notebook and opens it at the drawing of the Night Fury before laying it on the book, providing the very first drawing of that kind of dragon… even if only he knows it's been drawn.**

"Whoa…" breathed Fishlegs, amazed by such an important historical moment for the Book of Dragons. Maybe Hiccup should start adding stuff to that book…

He glanced over, then shuddered and backtracked. He wasn't gonna go anywhere near that Night Fury, anytime soon.

"Nice drawing," Bucket praised absent-mindedly.

"Thanks," replied Hiccup, smiling at the praise from Berk's only and best artist.

**The scene fades to three ships on the sea. The three sails have a dragon pierced by two swords, a flame-breathing Viking, and another dragon on them. Stoick is observing the map that still bears the dagger mark from the meeting. "I can almost smell them," he states, looking up and to the fog bank of Helheim's Gate alongside Spitelout. "They're close."**

The dragons found themselves exchanging even more glances. They didn't know Vikings could have such great sense of smell. Maybe they didn't know as much as they thought about them.

Stoick himself nodded. Those reptiles did indeed smell – though every dragon had a slightly different odour. He couldn't really describe it either – a Nadder smelled like a Nadder, period. After all, what did wood smell like? It smelled like wood.

**"Steady," he calls to his men as they observe the menacing and huge wall of fog that is Helheim's Gate, the Gate of Hell. Three gigantic sea stacks tell him it's the right point. "Takes us in."**

**"Hard to port!" exclaims the helmsman, soon followed by the other two on the other ships, as he steers the ship into the fog.**

**"To Helheim's Gate," Stoick adds needlessly.**

**The three ships are quickly engulfed by thick fog, making it look like they faded away. After a few seconds, a flash of light shows a dragon's silhouette, meaning they've already encountered the enemy's guards.**

The teens exchanged glances. They'd always known searching for the Nest meant fighting dragons, but they didn't think it'd mean fighting them blinded by the fog, and with only the ship as battlefield – a _wooden_ ship, if they might add. No wonder no one wanted to go.

A few dragons winced in shame. Nest or not, they could've at least left them all the ships instead of destroying two and mauling the third.

Stoick scowled. Friendly or not, how could that Night Fury be forgiven so easily? A lifetime of bringing destruction and stealing food couldn't be forgotten so easily.

**The scene snaps to Hiccup, with axe and shield, in the middle of Dragon Training. "You- You know, I just so happened to notice the Book had nothing on Night Furies," he says, oblivious to the fact he should be training. "Is there another book? A sequel? Maybe a little Night Fury pamphlet?" As soon as he finishes the sentence, a blast of fire takes off the head of his axe.**

Despite knowing the training dragons weren't keen on killing the teens, or at least not before they smelled Night Fury on him, Hiccup got lots of glares for being distracted so easily during a possibly life-threatening lesson.

Astrid would've punched his arm, but the very intimidating dragon beside him kind of stopped her from scolding him like that.

**"Focus, Hiccup! You're not even trying!" Gobber scolds him from offscreen. Hiccup looks around for the dragon and spots it running at him from between two walls. Feigning a few movements, Hiccup finally takes his right and darts off, quickly losing the dragon amongst the tens of wooden walls that turned the arena into a simple maze. "Today, is all about ****_attack_****!"**

"Since we're _fighting _dragons, shouldn't every lesson be about killing them?" asked Snotlout.

"Not at all!" Gobber exclaimed, outraged that his teaching skills had been put into discussion. "You have to learn how to survive dragons and how to handle peculiar dragons!"

"That, and Gobber wanted to have a laugh at our expenses," snorted Hiccup, ignoring his mentor's glare as he continued to stare at the wall.

**As the Nadder chases Hiccup, it suddenly spots Fishlegs in another corridor between the walls, leaving Hiccup on his own. "Nadders are quick, and light on their feet," Gobber continues. "Your job is to be quicker, and lighter!"**

"Thanks for the compliment!" Evergreen grinned cheekily, before frowning at the adult Vikings. "Wait, those bags of fat are supposed to be 'light on their feet'?"

A very specific Monstrous Nightmare bonked him with a claw. "Idiot, the Alpha Viking is the biggest of them all yet he dodged my attacks like nothing. They may be big but they're not slow. Just not flexible or agile."

A few Viking eyebrows went up at being defended by a dragon, truth or not. Stoick was amongst them. _'If they really aren't aggressive beasts, then why do they raid us when they could just fish or hunt on their own, with less casualties?'_

**Fishlegs peeks from a corner and then looks up, yelping as the Nadder jumps on that wall, preparing its tail to fire as the spikes reared up. With a swish of its tail, it sends spikes at the large boy, who blocks some with his shield before bumping into a wall and running away. "I'm really beginning to question your teaching methods."**

"And it's just lesson two," grinned Tuffnut. "That really says it all."

"Yeah!" agreed Ruffnut, cackling. "Though those lessons are dangerous, they're so awesome!"

"Field experience is the best training," Gobber argued, serious just like he'd been teaching them how to survive the Gronckle. "It gives you a good reason to do your best… except for Hiccup, anyway."

"For your information, I was paying attention – just not to the dragon!" protested the boy, as if that was any better. Astrid's and Toothless's snorts told him it wasn't. "I was trying to know more about the Night Furies since I met one!"

**"Look for its blind spot. Every dragon has one. Find it, hide in it, and strike!" Gobber instructs from where he's overseeing the dragon, outside the arena's chain roof.**

"Well, most of the time a dragon's blind spot is behind them," shrugged a Gronckle. "Except for the Zipplebacks and similar since they have more heads. Nadders are just unlucky to have their blind spot right in front of them."

"It's not actually exactly in front of us," protested Stormfly. "I can actually see in front of me! Just not very close up!"

The twins grinned, remembering how they'd almost been blasted. That had been fun… in hindsight.

**As Hiccup runs away, the twins take the corridor he just left, coming face-to-snout with the Nadder. Pressed together in front of the Nadder, both of them move to keep themselves in its blind spot – but make no move to attack it.**

"Why aren't you attacking?" frowned Snotlout. "You're supposed to fight it!"

"Hey, you weren't the one with a twelve feet tall dragon sniffing at your face, ready to fire as soon as we moved!" protested Tuffnut. "I'd like to enjoy my near-death experiences without the 'death' part!"

"Yeah, so we can risk it more times!" Ruffnut chimed in.

"I think the twins were the best recruits in that lesson," stated Hiccup, getting lots of incredulous looks. "Astrid did great as well, but she didn't take advantage of its blind spot, she just tried to stay hidden until the last moment. Snotlout… I didn't really see but what I heard was enough. Fishlegs backed out of every chance he had to face the dragon. Me, enough said. The twins are the only ones who actually took Gobber's advice and found the dragon's blind spot, managing to stay in it for several seconds. Which means they learned the lesson and thus, were the best recruits."

Everyone stared at him, and he shrugged. The twins were still the twins, but he gave credit where credit was due.

Speaking of said twins, they were dumbstruck and awestruck at the same time. Never before anyone had praised them – they just… weren't too disliked, they guessed. They were destructive but useful to the village in the fire brigade, and they did decent in Dragon Training. Nothing to be happy for, nothing to complain about.

And yet there he was, the traitor, the usual target of their insults and pranks, praising them for something that everyone else had not noticed. Gobber had later lectured them about keeping their fights out of the real fights, but he'd said nothing on how they'd found the Nadder's blind spot. Hiccup hadn't said they'd done right in arguing, but he hadn't just seen their mistakes.

They exchanged a glance and, in the way only the closest of siblings could, they reached a decision. Ruffnut was the first to speak. "Hiccup, care to answer a personal question?"

The auburn-haired boy was slightly taken aback by the request, but he nodded nonetheless. "Uh, sure."

"What do you think of us?" Tuffnut asked, their usual grins nowhere to be seen.

In the silence that followed, one could've heard Hiccup blink. "Uh… well, I think you're both equally brave and stupid for all the reckless things you do, but I know you are actually way more intelligent anyone gives you credit for – more intelligent than most Vikings, actually. You like explosions not just because it's destruction, but because it takes skill to create an explosion. Anyone can set a house on fire, but you've practised so much it's almost an art for you – I've heard you speak about plans for pranks several times, and I couldn't believe how complex some sounded. You're both actually good fighters, but since you're always arguing you rarely have the chance to show it. And despite what people think, I know you can be serious when it's needed." He paused for a moment, as if unsure whether he should say it or not, before continuing. "I also kind of envy your bond. You are each other's most important thing in the world, and it shows. Despite all your arguments, nothing can break you apart for long… you're like a Zippleback. Two souls bonded together so closely, they look like one."

"But a Zippleback-" Fishlegs was silenced by a small blast of fire landing at his feet, thanks to a very touched Gronckle, Strongjaw, that had it been able to, would've been crying its eyes out.

The twins exchanged a glance. "Thanks for answering," Tuffnut stated before both twins returned to ignoring Hiccup who, Thor bless his poor dragon soul, just looked extremely confused.

Secretly, Ruffnut elbowed her brother – this time not to hurt, but to get his attention. "One more reason for us to trust that dragon, _one_, and we're going over there."

Tuffnut nodded seriously. "They're better than here, dragon or not. I can't remember the last time anyone not our parents ever praised us."

"That's because it never happened," scoffed Ruffnut. "We were just Snotlout's lackeys, nothing more."

"That's gonna change." Ruffnut grinned at her brother and nodded before agreeing. "Yes, that's gonna change."

**The Nadder tries to sniff them out – and unfortunately for her, Ruffnut has to breath too, which results in her inhaling Tuffnut's smell – which is far from pleasant. Disgusted, she leans back. "Ugh, do you ever bathe?" How she doesn't know, since she does everything with him, it's unknown.**

**"You don't like it, then just get your own blind spot," Tuffnut replies crossly, scowling when she shoves him aside for a breath of fresh air. He shoves her back and then two butts heads.**

**"How about I give you one?!" she snaps back just as angrily before the Nadder squawks and fires. The two teens get out just in time to avoid the flames. Despite having been arguing just seconds prior, Ruffnut still grabs her brother and drags him out of harm's way.**

A few Vikings smiled at the caring move, but the twins didn't mind those. They'd had years to try and figure them out, and Hiccup had done it in seconds – despite being their usual victim. The twins had always been on their own, only having each other, when it came to who understood them. Maybe it was time they found someone else.

Besides, they didn't care about being Vikings. They were too carefree to give a damn about traditions and rules. Heck, breaking the rules was their favourite hobby! They just wanted to live as happily as they could in that shithole that was Berk. And if Hiccup had found the answer on the wrong side of the rules, well… they'd never really liked the rules anyway. And the dragons were awesome, with all the destruction they could cause.

If there was a chance they could be tamed and befriended, then they were totally in.

**"Blind spot? Yes. Deaf spot? Eh, not so much. Hehehe…" Gobber jokes and chuckles from his safe position. Astrid rushes by underneath, while Hiccup stops to ask him more questions.**

**"Hey, hey, so, how would one sneak up on a Night Fury?" he asks, pointlessly since the Night Furies are known to be mysteries, which means no one's likely to have sneaked up upon one… not without dying by its jaw or fire too.**

**"No one's ever seen one and lived to tell the tale," Gobber replies tiredly before snapping, "Now get in there!"**

"Not true any longer, I guess," Astrid noted lightly. Hiccup was really setting a whole lot of firsts, especially regarding the Night Furies.

"If only we could study it…" Fishlegs murmured excitedly, almost vibrating in his seat.

**Hiccup flinches and backs away, but doesn't stop. "I know, but hypothetically-"**

**"Hiccup!" He turns to see Astrid and Snotlout crouched down behind their shields. She gestures for him to do the same, whispering "Get down!", and Snotlout nods at him, telling him to follow her orders.**

"Helping 'Useless' now? And wow, what's that? Not flirting this time?" grinned Ruffnut. "Learned your lesson last time?"

Snotlout grumbled irritatedly. "Hiccup's a nuisance but he's still my cousin. I was just telling to do the right thing. And well…" He trailed off, knowing what would happen shortly after.

**Astrid peeks from the corner and spots the dragon, retreating behind the wall. Keeping it in sight, she takes a few breaths before rolling on the ground with her shield – and though physically almost impossible, she manages to perform that move despite the area of her shield being too great for her to just roll over. Snotlout quickly follows, though in his case his superior body weight might be helping him.**

**Hiccup attempts too, but physics start working again and he can't finish the roll. But it's to be noted, he would've done it perfectly hadn't he had that shield. As it is, he stops halfway, falling on his back.**

Laughters and chuckles burst from both sides of the room. Except for Hiccup, who's definitely not amused. "It's not my fault that shield weighted as much as I do!" he complained. "It was a matter of leverage, I couldn't use my own weight to pull it up, and I didn't have enough strength to lift it from the angle I was in. I had the worst possible leverage too!"

To be completely honest, only Gobber vaguely understood the details of what he'd just said. The others just chuckled more at his complaints.

"Stop whining, Hiccup!" snickered Snotlout, not even realizing he'd used his real name. "That was just ridiculous!"

Toothless, suddenly sobered up and unamused, shot a small plasma blast in front of the teen, shutting everyone up pretty quickly. "From now on, insulting my brother is insulting me."

"Your _brother_?!" boomed Stoick, standing up, furious at how casually the dragon declared itself Hiccup's family.

"Yes, his brother," Toothless replied, unafraid and unimpressed. "Someone who cares for him, sees him for who he is, supports him no matter what, plays with him, and someone he can rely on and take comfort from. I am his brother of a different race. The blood of the body will never be as strong as the bonds of the soul."

Stunned not only by the dragon's words, but also by the fact someone had just stood up to him, for Hiccup nonetheless -someone the whole village considered 'his business'-, Stoick dropped back on the floor. The thought that a dragon could be closer to his son than he himself hurt, but in the end, it was clear who Hiccup was sitting with.

_'Oh Thor… what have I done?'_

**Hiccup quickly gets up and runs away, barely escaping the Nadder's snapping jaws. The Nadder jumps on a few walls before spotting Astrid and Snotlout again, leaping down to face them. Astrid prepares herself for a fight, but Snotlout pushes her out of the way.**

**"Watch out babe, I'll take care of this," he states confidently, hurling his mace at the dragon.**

"I take that back, you haven't learned a single thing from the Gronckle's blast," Ruffnut cackled at seeing both Astrid's stormy expressions, onscreen and real.

"I seriously thought I would hit it!" Snotlout whined. "Besides, a mace is better than an axe against dragon scales! It breaks the bone without needing to pierce the hide!"

"That's just dumb," commented Gobber, still cheerfully grinning. "You need to be strong enough to break the bone, and if you are, chances are you're gonna cut straight through it with an axe. Maces are good and all, but in this case, an axe would've been the best choice."

"Not really," sighed Astrid, remembering a later fight with the Nadder. "I hit it on the nose by throwing my axe with both hands, and it just bounced off."

Stormfly laughed. "Well, _armour sixteen_, remember?" she stated proudly, grinning despite the fact she knew her past self would soon receive a shield-axe… an axe-shield… an axield to the face, courtesy of that girl.

"It remembered what I said!" Fishlegs exclaimed, almost brought to tears. "No one's ever remembered what I said about dragons!"

"That's dumb. Of course we remember it," scoffed Snotlout, crossing his arms. "We just don't repeat it or thank your for that."

He pointedly ignored the flat looks he received for that one.

**The mace completely misses the impossible-to-miss large dragon and harmlessly bounces off a wall. The Nadder looks at it before looking back at Snotlout and laughing at him.**

Everyone chuckled as well, much to Snotlout's embarrassment. Spitelout scowled.

"Did you say something or did you just laugh?" Hiccup asked the dragon, since they couldn't understand what they said on the wall images.

"I just laughed," admitted Stormfly, shrugging. "Though I was thinking something among the lines of 'lamest throw ever'."

"It was pretty pathetic," the still-not-named Hookfang conceded. "I hope that boy will be chosen to fight me. Seems like an easy enough fight."

"Hey!" exclaimed Snotlout, before realizing what that meant. "Wait, you're the one from the arena?!"

"Yes," he replied curtly before turning to Stormfly and the other trapped dragons. "Does he continue to be that pathetic or…?"

"He remains pathetic later," nodded Barf, before Belch added, "Though I think he stopped flirting."

"Never fought him," the small Terrible Terror shrugged. "The one time I exited the cage, I… kind of followed some bright spot on the ground back into it."

"Wait, you saw moving bright spots on the ground too?!" exclaimed Toothless, excited. "So that's were it went, to the arena! I searched for it for hours!"

Hiccup snorted and tried to stifle his laughter, but failed miserably. Astrid glanced at him and thought back to what had happened. Wait, did that mean…? She tried to imagine the imposing Night Fury chasing a light. It was too much, she joined Hiccup in his snickering.

**Snotlout, for a second, looks like a deer in the sight of a dragon. Then he resorts to his usual method of speaking: bullshitting all the way. "The Sun was in my eyes, Astrid! What do you want me to do, block out the Sun?!" he complains as they dodge a fire blast and take off running, ignoring the fact it was cloudy. "I mean, I could do it, but I just don't have time right now!"**

"What are you, Odin?" At Tuffnut's remark, the other teens minus Snotlout burst out laughing.

"No, but I would awesome standing beside him as we commanded the Sun!" the boy insisted stubbornly. His father just groaned and hid his face into his hands as everyone else laughed.

"That was even more pathetic," commented Hookfang, exasperated.

"Yeah, luckily I wasn't within earshot, or I would've been laughing too much to continue fighting," snickered Stormfly, having trouble talking because of her laughter.

Barf and Belch had no such problem. While one head laughed, the other talked. "As the saying goes, there's always someone who's better than you at something. But I'm pretty sure no one is better than him at being an idiot!"

"Come on, stop making fun of him," Meatlug intervened, putting an end to the giggles amongst dragons. "You've all your fair share of blunders. Don't belittle him for his."

Snotlout sulked. He didn't need to be defended by anyone, much less a dragon. Though he had to admit, seen from an outsider's view, his actions and words had been kinda pathetic. Pushing the best warrior of their age out of the way, completely missing his mark, and then coming up with the stupidest excuse he could've thought of? Yeah, not his proudest moment.

**As they run, Snotlout takes a left while Astrid runs straight, with the dragon hot on her heels. Hiccup is standing still up ahead, still talking to Gobber. Girl and dragon both bypass him without stopping to even warn him, though Astrid's screaming so that might count as a warning. The Nadder simply jumps over him, either too focused on the girl or just not deigning him worth turning around for. Knowing Hiccup, probably the latter.**

"Hey!" the boy protested, crossing his arms. Toothless laughed in his own way, earning himself an elbow in the side of his neck, which hurt a little even for him. In retaliation, he quickly unfolded a wing and sent Hiccup flying for a few feet before folding it back against his side. The boy made a point of sitting a good three inches farther away as he came back.

Astrid blushed slightly at hearing herself scream onscreen. Granted, she had a reason to, but Hiccup hadn't screamed when he'd been pinned by a _Night Fury_, and she was supposed to be fearless!

She sighed. Oh well… another thing she'd have to leave behind, she guessed.

Stormfly snickered alongside Toothless. "That's right. Besides, the girl was the only one I hadn't chased yet! It was only fair for me not to start chasing the boy I'd faced three times already."

**"Like… has anyone ever seen one napping?" The end of Hiccup's mini-speech is heard as the teens run past him, bumping into him on the way. He just ignores them as he stares up at Gobber for an answer.**

"Still talking, the hatchling?!" exclaimed Blazingfire, a reddish-orange Monstrous Nightmare. "Does he have any survival instincts?"

"Of course I do!" shouted Hiccup, outraged. Then he looked around, and found absolutely no support from anyone. Even Toothless was just quietly shaking his head. Betrayed, Hiccup crossed his arms again and sulked. "Useless reptile…"

**"Hiccup!" Gobber snaps, pointing behind him. Hiccup turns.**

**Behind him, turns out the walls are all collapsing as the dragon still chases Astrid, who is jumping from collapsing wall to collapsing wall. How she got up there, it's a mystery and it'll forever remain a mystery. Point is, she jumps onto the last wall, and then she jumps off, the dragon no more on her tail for some reason.**

**Problem is, her only way to perform a soft landing is to land on Hiccup himself, who is less than thrilled at the idea of having someone drop on him, even if Astrid is the lightest of the teens after he himself. "Hiccup!" she yells at him. Probably to get out of the way… but with how she's falling, she's gonna get some wicked bruises or even a broken bone if she doesn't soften her fall.**

Astrid withered in her seat, remembering what came after that. She looked up as she felt something nudge her arm. As it turned out, Hiccup had just leaned over to get her attention. "Hey, it's okay, you were under stress, didn't know the truth, and just had a dragon try to eat you – and your axe had gotten stuck in my shield, somehow. I don't blame you for being not in the best of moods."

_When am I ever?_, she wanted to retort, but she knew it'd be pointless. She'd already found out how stubborn Hiccup was. That was likely a conversation he wouldn't let her win.

And besides… he wasn't wrong. There had been some reasons she'd been in such a bad mood.

Still, it was no excuse, and she knew that.

**As foretold by the rules of bad luck, Astrid lands right on top of Hiccup, somehow getting her axe stuck into his shield. Scowling at her current predicament, she tries to get up – but somehow, she'd also managed to her their legs tangled up. Hiccup, on his part, just lays down, trying to move as little as possible. For some reason, the Deadly Nadder rushes past them, off to do who knows what.**

Despite being still slightly downtrodden because of what she knew was coming, Astrid blushed slightly at the highly compromising position the two of them were in. Without even looking, by the stutters alone, she knew Hiccup was faring worse than she was at containing his embarrassment.

The dragons laughed at what had just happened, and Stormfly cringed in embarrassment at how bluntly her actions had been described. She hadn't seen the two of them, so she'd just gone and searched for the girl in the pile of wood up ahead. It was just hard to notice without being explained.

**"Oooh," Tuffnut coos suggestively. "Love on the battlefield…"**

An axe flew and embedded itself not a foot away from Tuffnut's legs, making him jump and hide behind his sister, who prepared to throw him off before…

**"She could do better," Ruffnut grinned.**

…a plasma blast courtesy of a certain Night Fury hit the ground before her, scorching it and making her feel the heatwave, stilling her attempts to shake off her brother.

"I thought no attacks were allowed!" exclaimed Stoick.

Khor shrugged. "Three points I need to make. First, that didn't hit or harm anyone. Just scared and warned a little. Two, you're all immortal as long as you remain here. And third, I asked you not to, I didn't say you were forced to obey. It's just that it'd be much easier to watch past and future if you didn't start killing each other every two minutes."

Slightly pacified, the Chief sat back while Tuffnut and Ruffnut tested out their new immortality… by stabbing each other with their spears. True to Khor's words, the spears didn't even pierce their skins. Much to the twin's dismay as they thought they could've dismembered each other for fun.

**"L-Let me… Why don't you… augh!" Hiccup's broken sentences are stopped when Astrid stands up, pushing him back down.**

**Suddenly, the Nadder gets free of the wood trapping it, making Astrid's eyes widen in fright. She grabs her axe, but it's stuck deep. After a few tugs, and a few pained exclamations from Hiccup, she pulls harder, counterbalancing it by basically stepping on Hiccup's face – something as painful as it is disgusting. Those aren't new boots, and she's been running for a while with those. It's quite possible the dirt is hurting him more than the pain.**

Astrid shrank in both shame and fear when the Night Fury growled at her, furious at how she'd treated his self-proclaimed brother. Hiccup placed a hand over his snout, calming him. "Don't worry bud. She had her reasons. And besides, it's not like I didn't deserve it after spending the whole lesson unfocused and trying to ask Gobber stuff. I'm already lucky I wasn't cooked or eaten by the Nadder."

It had to be just the shame making her feel things that weren't there, but she could swear she felt her heart ache at hearing him mention stuff like himself dying so carelessly. It wasn't even a morbid joke of some kind. He just… considered death a very possible end for his day.

She also learned that Hiccup was forgiving. She'd say he was the most forgiving person she knew, but that would be too easy. Berkians were like Berk: harsh, tough and unforgiving. Hiccup was none of those. He was nice, gentle and merciful.

After casting a glance at the dragon to ask for permission and receiving a nod in return, Astrid scooted a little closer to the boy she was now sure she liked. Maybe it was just a temporary crush, maybe not… but she didn't care. He glanced at her in surprise, but didn't seem to understand the reason of her sudden vicinity. Good, she wanted to tell him when she was ready to tell him… though that peck on the cheek might've given her away already.

**Finally yanking the shield off of his arm, Astrid swings her axe at the dragon, whose open jaws are barely three feet away from her. The Nadder staggers away, stunned by the blow and in pain, leaving the two teens in the clear. "Well done, Astrid," Gobber calls out as if nothing happened.**

"Gobber!" exclaimed Stoick. "You're supposed to make sure they don't die! To keep them safe!"

"Ah, safety's overrated," shrugged the blacksmith, earning lots of incredulous looks from both Vikings and dragons. "And besides, they're all still alive, aren't they? So it worked."

Hiccup scowled. "Yeah, but if you haven't noticed, that method almost got us both killed," he stated loudly, a clear edge in his voice. "Learning blacksmithing on the job is already dangerous by itself, but dragon training by life-or-death situations? That's got to be a better way to teach us, Gobber."

Initially shocked by his tone, Gobber chose to ignore the edge in his voice and grinned. "Ooh, now I get it. My methods gets you hurt, nothing happens and you don't complain even when you almost chopped your arm off because I hadn't told you how the grindstone worked before making you sharpen a sword. But, once my methods get your girlfriend in danger, suddenly PAM! You blow up at me about how I teach. You shouldn't be biased, Hiccup."

Since he distinctively lacked any kind of weaponry to throw at the cheeky blacksmith, Hiccup chose to remove his left boot and throw it at the man, smacking him right on the head. When Gobber tried to toss it back at him, Toothless caught it and gave it back to Hiccup… covered in slobber. Disgusted, the boy set it aside to let it at least dry off before putting it back on.

"Though I have a question," Snotlout spoke up. "If you said the training dragons don't hurt the recruits because they want to survive, then why did the Nadder try to kill us all?"

"Well, we said the _Gronckle_ didn't," Hiccup replied with a shrug. "All the others weren't as peaceful."

"Of course I wasn't peaceful!" Stormfly exclaimed, outraged. "Why would I be peaceful with those who captured me!? I'd rather fight and die with honour!"

Toothless glanced at the Nadder before snorting. "Trust me, there's no honour in dying. I should know, I've come really close to it." Then he started to purr as he accepted Hiccup's apologetic petting.

**Astrid's shaken expression soon turns to… guess what… a scowl! She turns to Hiccup, who is crouching on the ground, weaponless, covering his head with his hands – which to be honest was a good response to being pinned down and without any means to defend himself. Unfortunately, Astrid doesn't see it that way – and doesn't remember it's actually her fault they ended up in that position. Instead, she takes out her anger on him.**

**"Is this some kind of a joke to you?" she asks crossly, and oh how wrong she is. "Our parents' war is about to become ours." Theirs, maybe. Hiccup's? Everyone always made it clear he would never be a warrior. "Figure out which side you're on." And that, that sentence that makes Hiccup frown pensively, is the straw that breaks the camel's back. If he has to choose a side… it probably won't be the one who has been mistreating him ever since he was born, for no other reason than who he was. So it's time to see what the other side has to offer.**

The words saddened Hiccup, as he knew that those had marked the point of no return. Up until then, he could've still forgotten about the Night Fury and instead focused on training, on becoming a Viking. Instead, he'd chosen to see what the dragons had to offer – how they would treat him. And it saddened him to think that a dragon he'd known for barely a few days, at the time, would treat him better than his own father ever had in years, without even considering the rest of the village. Absent-mindedly, he murmured, "My own side… but if Vikings really don't want me, I guess I'll choose the dragons."

Toothless heard him and nuzzled him gently. "Don't feel bad, Hiccup. You've given your best. If they couldn't see that, it was their fault and their fault alone. You have nothing to be blamed for."

Astrid too heard, and she felt even worse. She knew it had been her words the ones that had pushed Hiccup completely away from his village… from _the_ village. After everything they'd made him go through, she couldn't even say it was his village or his home any longer. His home was very obviously beside that dragon.

However, despite not having heard Hiccup, there wasn't a single Viking who had missed what had happened on the wall pictures would imply.

Most Vikings tried to chalk it up to Hiccup being overly dramatic and not trying to fit in the right way. That he'd been trying to fit a square peg into a triangular hole. Some even excused it as adolescence and its effects on the children's brains. But deep down they all knew why he'd left, even if they didn't want to admit it. Hiccup wasn't a Viking in many ways, but he was extremely mature sometimes. Still crazy and reckless, but mature at the same time. He wouldn't have chosen to side with the dragons hadn't he seriously thought they would accept him more than the village.

And they obviously had.

It wasn't like they had had no reason to treat him so, of course. Hadn't he befriended that Night Fury, he would've needed to face the cold hard truth: in Berk, one fought or died, and he wasn't fighting. It was just how it was. Add in the three-hundred-years war with the dragons that had begun seven generations prior, and they felt like they could be excused for thinking there was no other way. Hiccup's mother too had tried his way, and the only change was that her son had to grow up motherless and her husband had been heartbroken. Nothing good ever came out of backing out of a fight.

At the same time, from Hiccup's point of view, they had all treated him unnecessarily harshly – worse than how the Night Fury had treated him at least. And that was saying it all if a dragon was closer to him than his own village.

Was it really such a surprise he had chosen the dragons over his own people when his own people made sure to let him know he wasn't one of them?

Stoick, who had already known the reasons why Hiccup had betrayed the village, frowned at Astrid. So those were the words that pushed Hiccup to act on his doubts and theories and eventually leave behind his people.

Astrid, despite knowing he hadn't really abandoned the people and that it had been the other way around, still couldn't help but feel that maybe something good did come out of all that harshness and mistreatment. Hiccup had at least finally found a friend, and she had learned more than she'd ever thought about dragons.

Fishlegs looked down dejectedly. He looked like a Viking, but he didn't act like one. Even Hiccup was more aggressive than he was and could fight better. He just didn't invent anything. Instead, he spent his time studying, and the only reason he hung out with Snotlout and the gang was to avoid being bullied… too much. In the end, he'd just been too much of a coward. He'd left Hiccup on his own when he could've been the perfect friend for him, just to avoid the disappointment of the village.

Deep down, that had been the reason all teens had kept themselves away from the boy.

The twins exchanged glances. They were as skinny as Hiccup and maybe even more destructive. They only had three reasons they weren't as disliked as Hiccup in the village. One, they were enthusiastic fighters. Two, their family defended them when the people insulted them. And three, they hung out Snotlout and Astrid, the two big hotshots among the teens of the village, older or younger. Astrid because of her skill, Snotlout because he was the Chief's nephew and probably the next heir since everyone knew Hiccup wouldn't be allowed to become Chief, given how hated he was. Staying next to them somehow lessened the anger of the villagers for all their pranks… while Hiccup didn't have any family who helped him out of the village's disappointment, and was all on his own.

Snotlout himself knew it wasn't fair Hiccup had been the social outcast when the boy didn't deserve any of it. He didn't personally have anything against him, heck when he'd started becoming good at Dragon Training Snotlout ditched _Astrid freaking Hofferson_ to hang out with him. But the disappointment of the village was a highly infective disease, and anyone hanging around with a victim was very likely to be infected as well. Besides, he'd only ever followed the adults' example. His own father always grumbled and grouched about how ridiculous the 'heir of Berk' was and how ashamed Stoick had to be with such a son. Stoick himself never defended his son in public except in extreme cases, and was harsher on the boy than he was with the twins whenever they caused trouble. He just followed the others, and if that meant bullying and picking on someone who didn't deserve it well, better Hiccup than him. His father already complained about all his apparent flaws and shortcomings enough, without having to add being friends with the runt.

All in all, all teens aside from Astrid knew they had just narrowly dodged being treated like Hiccup, albeit not to that extreme. All of them had reasons to be disliked by the village, and all of them weren't all that Viking-like themselves. And they all had reasons to dislike the village for the harsh childhood they'd had. Sometimes they felt their group of friends had been a warmer family than their actual ones.

For Hiccup, the least Viking-like of them all and also the worst-treated child in the history of Berk, to leave the Viking side and join the one that didn't actively make his life hell wasn't so surprisingly. Saddening, yes, but not surprising.

Each of them, independently from the others, silently decided that as soon as they were given a reason to choose Hiccup's side over the Vikings', they'd do it. At least among misfits they'd fit in better. And Hiccup already seemed much more forgiving than any Viking.

Unbeknownst to the adults, Berk was about to lose all its teens and Dragon Training recruits.

**_Explanation time._**

**_A few things - I know many stories have the Vikings and the teens much harder to convince... but honestly? This is way more canon-compliant. The teens were the only ones who were NEVER swayed by whatever happened to make the villagers look at the dragons crossly (Mildew mainly...). And it's clear that the friendship between the Riders, and their dragons as well, is deep and stable._**

**_HTTYD might not have shown it but I believe this to be just about what happened._**

**_Sorry for the long reactions between movie snippets, but some things cannot wait until the end of the chapter 'just because'._**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**


	6. Mass Teen Exodus

_**IMPORTANT AN: two things. One, I got REALLY busy. Two, up until November I probably won't update any of my stories due to a trip to Italy. Nothing else to say, so busy I won't leave an AN at the end.**_

Nobody felt like saying much. After all, what could they even say? Oh, I'm sorry Hiccup that we've made your life living hell? Yeah, Vikings weren't all that bright, but they weren't _that_ stupid either.

The dragons were confused by just how thoughtful and pensive all the Vikings seemed to be. True, the little hatchling and the Night Fury were really an odd pair, both lonely and both the best in different fields. The Night Fury excelled in the body, while the hatchling ruled the mind. However, that didn't catch their attention as much as it did the Vikings'. They had always known Vikings did not have battle implicit in their blood and that they only fought back in self-defence, so why would they be surprised by a hatchling not murdering a friendly dragon?

Okay, maybe not so friendly in the past, but still not hostile enough to warrant any killing intent.

The teens, surprisingly, almost agreed with the dragons on that part. The Night Fury, as far as it had appeared, had not given them any reason to think it'd harm Hiccup. If anything, it protected him from the other villagers.

**The scene changes to a high shot of the cove, with the lake taking up most of it. Then, a shield with a dragon painted on it is shown between two rocks, slowly inching closer.**

"Aaaah!" screamed Tuffnut, pointing at the screen. "That shield moved on its own!"

"That's so cool," Ruffnut remarked, oblivious to her brother's fear.

Hiccup rolled his eyes while Snotlout just gave the two of them a glare. Astrid and Fishlegs both didn't react outwardly, but inwardly they were agreeing with both boys. The twins could be so dumb sometimes.

Unbeknownst to them, some dragons had begun chattering about that same topic -the moving shield- as well.

**Hiccup peeks over the top of the shield and once he sees there's no terrifying demon spawn ready to blast him or eat him, he throws a fish on the mossy ground. Peeking out of the corner of the rock, he tries to move forth, only for his shield to get stuck. He attempts to move it, but to no avail, it's stuck.**

"Lad, how did you get that shield stuck like that?" Gobber chuckled while others snickered at his misfortune. "It should be impossible!"

"I'm pretty sure the rocks moved just to spite me," he rolled his eyes with his usual snark.

"I didn't know rocks could move…" a particularly dumb Gronckle mumbled, earning flat looks from the rest of the dragons. "W-What? I didn't know!"

"That's because they _can't_ move," Meatlug informed her kinsdragon.

"Oh…"

**He slides under it and tries the other side, but again in vain. Defeated, he walks over to the fish and picks it up before walking deeper into the cove, an apprehensive look on his face as he steps closer to where he'd last seen the Night Fury.**

"Wait, you went back a second time?!" Stoick roared, earning a shrug and a nod from his son. Instead of the expected anger, though, the man just seemed to slump, and facepalmed. "I'm not sure if I should be proud that my son is the bravest Viking _ever_, or if I should be exasperated because my son is the most _insane_ Viking _ever_."

"I think you should be proud that your son is the most insane Viking ever," Ruffnut grinned, casting Hiccup a sultry look that had him look away. _'Too easy…'_

Meanwhile, Hiccup was just trying not to show any kind of disgust, because holy Thor Ruffnut flirting was just like his dad's cooking – it didn't go down easily. Also, he was kind of afraid of the girl, and in a different way than he was afraid of Astrid. She was just plain crazy – and stupid.

So yeah, thanks but no thanks.

Toothless pressed both paws to his snout to stifle his snickering when he saw Astrid frown, but it was getting really hard to.

**The view pans around him as he walks with the fish in his right hand. Behind a large rock, the Night Fury stalks him with its eyes, tail swishing like a hunting cat. Then the view changes to right behind the dragon's head, showing it looking at Hiccup from its vantage point.**

Many Vikings and dragons sucked in a breath. A hunting Night Fury was never a good thing. How in the nine realms/skies had that boy/hatchling survived? Humans weren't in the dragons' diet, but they were still made of meat.

Hiccup, much to everyone's bewilderment, was smiling widely, remembering that day perfectly. It had been one of the best days of his life. Now that he thought of it, the last few weeks had been among the best days of his life too.

Toothless smiled as well. Despite his initial somewhat annoying persistence, he adored Hiccup's presence. It was just so different, so much more alive, than the other dragons'. Hiccup talked and played with him, and he was sure the boy could somewhat understand him as well. He'd told him everything about how the village had treated him and how he had always wished to have a friend, just one single friend to chase away the misery and the loneliness and the self-loathing, and how happy he'd been when he'd found one. His smile turned into a frown as he remembered what he'd told him about the village. Those conversations had made him feel proud for destroying a village that treated his brother so badly.

**Hiccup thinks he's heard something and turns before gasping as he sees the Night Fury slowly descend from its rocky perch with a low growl. As the dragon stops not twenty feet away from him, its pupils are slightly more rounded. Hiccup offers it the fish with a cringe. He's almost sure this would go wrong somehow, but he's willing to try. After all, what does he have to lose?**

_'Yes,'_ many thought, _'what does he have to lose?'_

What would he leave behind?

His home? Please. No matter how little they liked to take the blame, every Viking knew Berk had shunned him and spat on him for as long as he can remember. And the dragons surely didn't help, since they were the reason Berk was so harsh and in return, its people so harsh on the boy.

His father? A man who didn't listen to his son, didn't believe in him, didn't have time for him, didn't train him, and publicly humiliated him? Stoick had been a good father when Hiccup was little. Evidently, he'd stopped being one when Hiccup didn't start showing signs of being a 'real' Viking child.

His friends? Hadn't it been such a depressing topic, they would've laughed. Friends? What friends? He had no friends. Oh, actually that wasn't true – he had the dragon now.

Gobber? Maybe. That was maybe the only thing he'd miss if he'd died. But even Gobber could get on Hiccup's nerves easily, like he'd proven when walking him back to the house or at the beginning of Dragon Training.

Toothless, not liking how the 'movie' described Hiccup's thoughts, grumbled in displeasure. "I'm tempted to go back to destroying catapults when this is all over, just because of how horribly you've all treated him."

No one bothered to reply except for Hiccup, who scolded him for even just thinking something like that.

**Curious and hungry, the dragon's pupils go round and it advances slowly, opening its gummy mouth to grab the fish. Then it spots something, rears back and growls threateningly.**

Everyone sucked in a breath, except for Hiccup, who just snickered at them. "Guys, it's already happened. This was a couple of weeks ago. He just saw my knife and decided he didn't like it."

Astrid stared at him, doubtful. "The mighty Night Fury was scared of a tiny dagger?"

Said 'mighty Night Fury' huffed indignantly. "That was my first time interacting with a Viking so close. How was I supposed to know that wasn't dangerous? Besides, Vikings were all the same to me before meeting Hiccup, and the dragons told me some of them could kill dragons bare-handedly. Of course I wasn't going to take any chances."

"Though honestly, that's a bit unfair," Fishlegs commented shyly, blushing when people turned to look at him in curiosity. "W-Well, Hiccup only had that knife. The Night Fury has claws, teeth, scales, superior strength, size and speed, and firepower over him. It's a bit unfair…"

"It was," nodded Hiccup. "But that's how I showed him I meant no harm – by letting him see I could physically _do_ him no harm."

"And then I showed him I meant no harm by having every mean to kill him, and not doing it," Toothless completed, nodding alongside the boy. "That was without the shadow of a doubt the best moment of my entire life."

Hiccup smiled and petted him, agreeing wholeheartedly.

"I don't understand," a Zippleback complained. "You've only known each other for a few weeks. How comes you're so close?"

Hiccup and Toothless shrugged, unable to give a clear answer.

**Stepping back in fright, Hiccup moves his vest to the side to reveal his dagger. The dragon obviously doesn't like it and backs away with a growl, pupils narrowed and wings half-raised to make itself look bigger. As Hiccup lays a hand on the knife, it growls even fiercer, scaring him half to death.**

Most Vikings were pale, and had the dragons been able to make their scales lose colour, they would've. An angry Night Fury was never good news.

Hiccup, instead, just chuckled fondly at his friend's paranoia. "Thanks bud, I'm flattered to know you think I could be a danger to a _Night Fury_."

"You're never going to let that go, will you?" grumbled Toothless, clearly not enjoying the teasing.

"Nope."

**Still fearful, Hiccup lifts the knife by its pommel and then drops it at an arm's length from him. Still not enough, the dragon jerks its head sidewards and the boy complies, scooping up the knife with his foot and kicking it into the lake with a splash.**

Stoick wanted to scold his son for abandoning his only weapon, but seriously, even with a battleaxe, what could Hiccup ever hope to do against a Night Fury? What could _anyone_ ever hope to do, aside from going on a one-way trip to Valhalla?

But the dragon was Hiccup's friend, so nothing had happened.

Gobber groaned. He surely didn't like seeing Hiccup's first weapon being so carelessly thrown into the water, despite knowing he'd later retrieved it.

The teens were speechless. Well, most of them. "Hey Astrid!" Tuffnut called out with a grin. "I think it's safe to say Hiccup's more 'fearless' than you are!"

The girl glared straight at him, indicating just how little 'safe' saying that was. "If by 'fearless' you mean 'crazy', then yes, definitely."

"I like crazy," Ruffnut grinned, looking at Hiccup again, but he just continued to stare at the wall.

**The dragon's behaviour changes instantly. It sits up, pupils completely round, and looks at him with an open, friendly and interested gaze. Its left largest ear-frill twitches slightly. Unholy offspring of lightning and death or not, it's clear the Night Fury is at the very top of the list when it comes to cute dragons. No way anything could beat that.**

Hiccup smiled and rubbed his face against the dragon's scales, appreciating their texture, while many dragons went 'aww' at the sight. A few Vikings did as well, but most just chuckled.

Astrid shook her head. That was the dragon everyone had been so terrified of for years? She glanced at Hiccup. Yes, they definitely matched each other. Both intelligent, lonely, different from the others, and damn cute. Because she had to admit it, despite his lankiness, Hiccup was the best-looking of all the guys in the village. Most others looked like brutes or rolls of lard with eyes. Also, she never really liked the burly and overly muscled built so many Vikings had – like Snotlout.

Still, it'd take a while to get used to seeing a _Night Fury_ acting cute.

Stoick almost choked on his laughter. "All of the night and none of the fury, I see!"

Toothless grumbled and hid his face with his tail. "Stop embarrassing me…"

"Everyone else was embarrassed already," Snotlout pointed out, referring to just how tactless the 'movie' was when describing people or events. "It's your turn."

**Confused and a bit uncertain, Hiccup holds out the fish. The dragon stares at it before crooning as it slowly walks forward, a bit like a careful caterpillar. It opens its mouth to show its gummy mouth, no fangs in sight. Why does it not just take the fish, only that dragon knows.**

"Before you ask I told you to put it in my mouth so I wouldn't scare you by biting it off your hands," Toothless grumbled, still very unamused. "Also, if anyone compares me to a caterpillar again, I'll test if the Gods really did make you all immortal or not."

Snotlout ignored the twins discussing if to do it or not to focus on the screen alongside Fishlegs. What had gotten into that dragon? Or if that was its natural behaviour, why did it act so aggressively during the raids?

**"Ah. Toothless," Hiccup comments, frowning slightly and still holding out the fish. "I could've sworn you had-"**

**Tired of waiting, the dragon's teeth pop out of the gums and it snatches the fish from his hands, startling him, before throwing it in the air before swallowing it in two pieces and licking its lips.**

**"…teeth," Hiccup finishes weakly, staring at the dragon in awe.**

"Retractable teeth?!" exclaimed Fishlegs. "I wonder why Night Furies would have retractable teeth. Usually dragons don't have any unnecessary ability!"

Toothless shrugged. "Beats me. I don't think anyone knows. I mean, why do you Vikings have hair of different colour?"

"Why do you dragons have scales of different colours?" Gobber shot back immediately. "Same answer, I think – to impress the mates!"

Most Vikings groaned, confusing the dragons. So hair was not used to attract mates?

"Then you must be a really disliked option," noted the Nadder Skyblaze. "Since you have no hair."

"I do have hairs – in my moustaches!" Gobber pointed at the dirty blonde tresses made out of his moustaches. "And besides I'm too old for mates anyway. I don't want 'em!"

"Sure, Gobber," nodded Stoick, patting his friend's shoulder.

**Then the dragon looks at Hiccup and starts to coo as it walks closer. As opposite, the boy backs away until he stumbles and crawls away from the dragon. "Ah- ah- No no, no… Ah-" his back hits a rock. "I don't have any more!"**

"Wrong thing to say," sighed Hiccup.

Toothless snickered. "It was funny to see you eat it. You made weird faces."

"Hiccup, what is it talking about?" asked Snotlout, glancing warily at the beast. "What did you eat?"

"You'll see soon enough." The boy shook his head. "Though you'll wish you hadn't."

**Apparently understanding him, the dragon retches a little before throwing up half the fish from earlier. Hiccup lets out a disgusted 'ugh' as the dragon sits back on its haunches, looking at him.**

Fishlegs turned a little green. "Please tell me that wasn't what you had to eat," he groaned in disgust.

"Yes, yes it was," admitted the boy before petting the dragon. "Though knowing what it meant for him to give it to me, I have to admit it was one of the meals I treasure most in my life."

"A raw half fish regurgitated by a dragon?" Astrid asked, grossed out. "Hiccup, what do you eat at home, yak dung sprinkled with dirt?"

"Nah, just Stoick's cooking, which is just as bad," Gobber cut in, earning himself a fierce glare from Stoick and a thumbs-up from Spitelout. "And since eating in the Mead Hall would probably result in being picked on by Snotlout and his gang of idiots he tries to avoid it as much as he can."

Snotlout felt a pang of guilt, just like his 'gang of idiots'. Though in his defence, someone had to be the village's scapegoat, and Hiccup just so happened to be perfect for the job.

"I don't think he meant it like that," a Gronckle, Strongjaw, spoke up. "The Night Fury just used half of the _only_ fish it had eaten for probably days, to feed a _Viking_ hatchling. It speaks of great heart and already a strong bond."

Toothless shrugged. "Hiccup could really use some more meat on those bones. He's way too skinny."

"True," conceded the boy, tilting his head to acknowledge the point.

"I bet Hiccup can't eat it without throwing up," stated Tuffnut.

"I'll take that bet," grinned Ruffnut. "If I win, you'll take the blame for the next three pranks!"

"Fine!"

**The scene shows the two of them having some sort of staring contest to understand each other's intentions. Hiccup is wary and still slightly scared. The dragon, instead, is calm and serene. After a few seconds, Hiccup calms down but still doesn't know what it wants him to do.**

**To help him, the Night Fury looks down at the fish and then back up at him. Hiccup glances at the fish as well before sighing resignation. After another second to gather his courage, the boy takes a bite out of the fish – but keeps himself from swallowing. Raw fish and dragon saliva are gross on their own, without putting them together.**

**Thinking he'd done it, Hiccup offers the fish back to the dragon with a full-mouthed smile, who just swallows idly to remind him what he still needed to do. Hiccup slumps in defeat. Looking up at the sky to see if the Gods helped him, the boy swallows, and immediately has to force back the vomit at the horrid taste. After swallowing that too, he shudders in disgust.**

"See? He threw up," grinned Tuffnut. "He just stopped it before it exited his mouth. I win."

"No fair, he didn't throw up, he just puked a little in his mouth, that's different!" exclaimed Ruffnut. Both twins were sore losers, everyone knew that.

"Iron stomach," commented Hoark, impressed. Of course, many could've pulled that off too – but Hiccup was just a scrawny fifteen-year-old runt. Who knew he had that in him?

**The dragon licks its lips and Hiccup catches on, smiling to prove he enjoyed the snack.**

"Wow, how did you understand that's what it meant?" asked Fishlegs, awestruck. "It could've meant anything!"

"But he didn't mean anything, he asked if I had liked it or not," grinned Hiccup. "Also, people, you may want to prepare yourself because soon, you'll be drunk on cuteness."

Toothless hid his face as people exchanged confused glances, the dragons too.

**Toothless looks at him, never having seen a smiling Viking before, and then its mouth twitches as its corners curl upwards. Surprised and in awe, Hiccup stares as the dragon pulls of the first draconic smile ever – without any teeth to show it meant no harm.**

Vikings and dragons alike were frozen in shock before shouts of delight and awe exploded in the hall. "Aww, he's so cute!" exclaimed the same female Zippleback who had commented on Hiccup's own cuteness, earning herself another sour look from her mate, a brown-yellow Zippleback who had yet to speak. "Look at him!"

"Damn, it's a good thing humans and dragons can't mate or that one would have all the girls in the island after it!" exclaimed Gobber, blunt as always, earning himself dozens of various weapons or footwear thrown at him. "Okay, okay, sorry. Jeez, why Hiccup can use sarcasm and I can't?"

"You learned sarcasm from me," snorted Hiccup, even though it wasn't completely true. The blacksmith had always been sarcastic. His presence had just made the blacksmith more open to use it.

"That dragon replicated your smile because it knew it was a way to show appreciation, like you 'smiled' with the fish!" exclaimed Fishlegs, lamenting not having a notebook to keep track of all his notes. "It's amazing! Think what else it could learn! Like, maybe even writing, or- or-"

"Or drawing," added Toothless, sending Hiccup a sly smirk. "After all, Hiccup _is_ a great artist, isn't he?"

"I'm good at sketches," grumbled the boy, despite knowing he was actually good at drawing – but it usually took a lot of time for each drawing. "Drawing is something else entirely."

"I said drawing, not painting," grinned the dragon.

**Hiccup, amazed, sits up straighter, trying to reach out to touch it. The dragon growls as its teeth pop out and flies away, clearly not liking the attempt.**

**After landing on the other side of the lake, the dragon blasts the ground with a steady blue-white flame to scorch it to the right temperature before settling down onto it. A chirp gets its attention and it looks up, seeing a bird with its nest, three eggs in it. It watches in awe at the creature, which is able to fly as opposite to it.**

**Then its gaze lands on Hiccup, sitting not too far away. The boy nonchalantly waves at him. Ear frills lowered and eyes narrowed in exasperation, the dragon turns away and uses its tail to cover its face from the boy.**

Chuckles rang out in the hall for the umpteenth time since the start of the 'movie'. "Well, it's got the right to be annoyed," laughed Gobber. "You can be really stubborn."

"Definitely a Haddock," commented Spitelout, clapping his brother-in-law on the back. "I must say, I've had doubts on the lad ever since he was born, but you've done him well on stubbornness!"

**With an awe-filled smile, Hiccup scoots nearer and reaches out to touch the tail. The dragon lifts the tail and spots him, making him jump up, cringe and quickly walk away. Fed up with the stubborn human and exasperated even further, the Night Fury walks away as well.**

A few more 'aww's were heard at Hiccup's expression, making him blush once more.

"I really don't understand you Vikings," grumbled a Monstrous Nightmare, Magmascale. "You have the most adorable being in existence on your island, and you treat him so poorly?"

"We needed warriors, not adorable children," Gobber defended the Vikings.

Hiccup perked up. "_Needed?_ As in, past tense?"

The blacksmith shrugged. "Well, it seems like we might not need them for long now. Since, you know, this is how the war ends, and it clearly involves you and your dragon."

**The scene fades to the dragon asleep hanging upside down from a branch, much like a bat. Opening its eyes, the beast spots Hiccup a bit further away, sitting on a stone.**

Toothless glared at Hiccup before he could comment on how he'd slept. "It's your fault anyway, for bugging me so much."

**With a stick, the boy seems to be drawing in the dirt. As he draws, the Night Fury approaches him. Tensing up a bit, he pretends not to have noticed and soon the drawing looks like the dragon's head. The Night Fury coos as it notices it's itself.**

"Wow, you managed to do that, with a stick and some dirt?" exclaimed Fishlegs, awed.

Hiccup shrugged. If one asked him, it still wasn't all that good.

Gobber chuckled. "Gothi should take drawing lessons from you," he noted, earning himself a whack on the head from said Elder. "And also some lessons on not to hit people when you're angry…"

**Suddenly, it gets an idea. Walking off on two legs like it has seen Hiccup do, it disappears from view. A crack of wood is heard, and then the dragon reappears with the branch it slept on in its mouth, tracing lines on the dirt.**

**The dragon draws all around Hiccup, much to the boy's amazement. Taking a moment to analyse the human again, the dragon continues to draw, accidentally smacking Hiccup on the head with the leafed part of the branch before dropping the branch.**

**Looking at its own masterpiece, the dragon coos approvingly, nodding. Hiccup too is marvelled.**

Vikings and dragons alike were stunned. "He… he _drew?_!" exclaimed Stormfly, beyond shocked, while Hookfang was speechless.

"I drew," Toothless nodded with pride.

"For its first time, and the fact it's a dragon drawing with its mouth, it's a damn good portray of Hiccup!" exclaimed Gobber, relieving a bit the tension.

Stoick sighed, shaking his head. Okay, all dragons but that one were evil and mindless beasts. He had to admit it, the Night Fury now seemed like a good pet to keep at home… well, outside of home if he wanted to keep his house whole.

"Wow, your dragon knows how to draw better than you," Snotlout mocked him, or at least tried. Instead, all he got was several deadpan looks from everyone who had heard him, including Hiccup.

"If you really need to insult me, at least make it true or original," the boy rolled his eyes. "Or you'll hurt me more with the cringe-worthiness than with the offence itself."

"Oh, shut up Hiccup," grumbled his -former- bully. It ended like that almost every time. Despite popular belief, Snotlout didn't beat Hiccup _every_ time, and even when he did the boy would always just sass all the way through it. How was one supposed to bully someone if that someone couldn't even bother to act like a victim?!

**Upbeat music begins to play as Hiccup looks around at the lines in the dirt, amazed but not seeing the resemblance.**

**As he examines the drawing, he accidentally steps on a line, causing the dragon to growl. Wincing the boy lifts the offending foot, and the dragon coos. He tries two more times, causing two more growls and coos from the beast, before bringing the foot on the other side of the line, causing the dragon to relax further. He smiles in understanding.**

_'CUUUUTE!'_ went through most of the dragons' heads and some of the Vikings'. Astrid was one of those, though she was more like _'he's so cute, how did I not befriend him before?'_.

**Stepping from intersection to intersection, Hiccup weaves through the drawing. As the music reaches its climax, the boy stops as he feels the dragon's breath on his nape. Turning around with a mix of fear and wonder, he stares at the dragon, mystified.**

Hiccup smiled at the fond memory. Even if he'd never said that aloud, that was one of the happiest moments in his entire life. True, Toothless had walked off pretty soon, but it had still been the moment he knew he'd made his very first friend. He felt a little guilty knowing he treasured that memory more than most memories of his father. And now that he thought of it, even his puppy crush on Astrid had taken a lot of steps back once he'd met Toothless. His bud was just that awesome, and he wouldn't change him for the world.

Toothless was happy as well. Meeting Hiccup had been wonderful. Easily the best day of his life. Despite remembering his early years as a hatchling with parents, those memories were far away and faded in time. Then the Night Fury Slayer had come and taken his parents from him. He'd only escaped because he'd been exploring a small crevice not far from his family's nest at the time. He'd gone back to find no one waiting for him. Years later, other dragons had explained it to him. In his blind grief and rage, he admitted he'd taken it out on all Viking villages. Then he'd met Hiccup.

Hiccup. At a first glance, just a puny, weak, skinny Viking hatchling who could've been killed by a Terrible Terror. And to his eternal shame, at first he too had been fooled by his appearance. Despite being stunned and touched by his mercy, Toothless hadn't thought of looking any further until that very moment, when the boy had chosen to trust him. He knew that if he were to say it out loud, it wouldn't have the desired effect, but it was in that moment he'd seen just how great Hiccup's heart was – and his heart was what made him so wonderful. It was what was inside him, not how he looked.

He had a golden heart, he was nice, merciful, generous and patient. He was incredibly smart, and playful, but also responsible, mature and determined. And most of all, he was trusting. In his heart there was no evil bone of any kind. And Toothless could honestly say he'd never seen someone like Hiccup before.

Most others glanced between the two non-blood brothers. Given their expressions, it was an important moment.

The teens specifically were interested. By now they were all convinced that the Night Fury wasn't a bad dragon – actually, it was very friendly. However, there was a big difference between a friendly dragon and a friendly _intelligent_ dragon. The one watching with them was intelligent, no doubts about that. The one on the wall seemed friendly, but an animal… mostly. Not an intelligent being.

**Hiccup turns around, coming face-to-face with the Night Fury, that's observing him with interest. Amazed, he reaches out with a hand, trying to touch it like he tried before.**

**However, once again, the dragon doesn't seem to appreciate and snarls, narrowing its eyes.**

**Confused but not giving up, Hiccup thinks for a second before turning away and closing his eyes, trusting the dragon not to kill him. Then he reaches out once again, and this time the beast doesn't growl.**

**However, he does not touch it. His hand stops a few inches away from the dragon's snout, not going any further. In a way, he's acknowledging the dragon's intelligence and letting it choose for itself if it wants the contact or not. In his mind, the dragon turned from creature to intelligent being. Apparently, it's the right thing to do as the dragon's eyes widen again and it sniffs at his hand, curious. It hesitates only for a second.**

**Then it closes its eyes and presses its snout against Hiccup's hand.**

**Startled, Hiccup slumps in relief and then dares to sneak a glance at the proud creature, who pulls back and sniffs his hand before snorting softly, narrowing its pupils and rushing away.**

**He doesn't care. He's too busy staring at his hand in amazement, still feeling the smooth, warm scales under his touch.**

For a few seconds, no one spoke in the hall. That had been an important moment – maybe the most important moment of all the Dragon-Viking war.

And it was because of that, that Stoick the Vast instinctively knew he had been wrong. "Hiccup," he began gravely, gaining everyone's attention as a side effect. "It seems you were right. I'm sorry… and I'm sorry for not listening to you. From now on, that dragon is welcome in our village, and in our home."

Stunned into silence, Hiccup could only gape. "Do- Do you mean it?"

The Chief nodded. "Yes, son. It's clear that dragon is your friend, and it's clear I had misjudged you and it… _him_ both."

"But Stoick, one dragon won't stop the raids!" protested Spitelout, shocked by his brother's declaration. "What about all the others?! Are you saying we should just _forgive them?!_"

"Do we kill boars on the other side of the island for no reason?" Stoick replied coolly. "Do we catch more fish than we can store? Do we cut down trees we'll never be able to bring back to the village? No. We don't do unnecessary things. If those dragons attack us, we'll defend ourselves. If they don't, we won't go looking for them. Just like we've always done. It's not forgiveness. It's just not continuing the conflict unless we have to."

"But the dragons are devils, we all know that!" Phlegma the Fierce exclaimed, earning some mumbles of agreement from the crowd. "It's been three hundred years, and nothing has changed – why should it change now?"

"I wouldn't exactly say nothing has changed." Fishlegs wilted under the stares he received. "I-I mean… people have tried to befriend dragons before. They were just condemned as traitors and executed…"

"What's different is that this time we are _all_ seeing this," continued Stoick, nodding in thanks to the Ingerman boy. "And thus we can see the boy's actually right, instead of branding him a traitor… like we've done not an hour ago."

"Well, right or not right, we're with him," Ruffnut stated as she and her twin stood up and walked toward Hiccup – who instead glared at them. "What? You don't want to be right?"

"I'm happy to be right and I'm happy to see you've admitted dragons aren't mindless monsters – or at least mine isn't," he replied coolly. "However, I am not happy about how you've both treated me in the past what? Eight years? You think I'm just gonna forget about that?"

The twins exchanged a glance, and Tuffnut shrugged helplessly, so Ruffnut had to answer. "Yeah, we weren't really nice to you," she admitted shamelessly. Not that it wasn't true. "And we don't really have an excuse. And saying we're sorry wouldn't be true because we had fun playing pranks on you. But we know we went too far a lot of times and we know that pranking you didn't mean we couldn't at least try to be your friend. In our defence, though, being friends with you meant we'd be looked at with disappointment too, so thanks but no."

"Then why are you here?" asked Hiccup, still glaring at them – actually the glare got even worse at their confession.

"Because you're better than the alternative now," shrugged Tuffnut. "And because having a dragon sounds cool. Didn't think it was possible though, but if you tamed a Night Fury…"

Hiccup wanted to be angry and stay angry. Their excuses and reasons were weak and it wouldn't take much to push them away – and be in the right. But… idiots or not, did he really want to push potential friends away? Did he have the heart to stay angry? And besides, it wasn't like he would've remained the disappointment of the village if he'd been able to avoid it, so why would he be surprised if others were scared of the ridicule? The twins weren't on the same level as he was only because they hung out with Snotlout, the hotshot of the teens – probable future Heir and Chief and all around the most Viking-like of the group. Other than that, the two were pretty much universally disliked by the villagers.

Heaving a deep sigh, he nodded. "It doesn't make us friends – but I guess you can stay here on 'my side'…"

"Yay!" Tuffnut cheered, plopping down right next to the dragon with no problem whatsoever, with Ruffnut sitting down right next to Hiccup – which prompted Astrid to get up and sit on Hiccup's other side, sandwiching him between the two blondes.

"Hiccup agreed to building us machines of destruction!" added Ruffnut.

"I didn't agree to that!" Hiccup immediately protested, but the two twins ignored him.

However, what or rather who couldn't be ignored was Fishlegs, who had shyly made his way over to them. "Can… can I sit here?"

As opposite to the twins, Hiccup didn't need to think much for the husky boy. He loved dragons, and that was certainly a good way to learn. And to be honest, he was a bit of a coward, which meant he would never think of facing the ridicule if he could avoid it.

So he just shrugged. "Sure. But keep your enthusiasm about dragons in check since the 'movie' thing freezes every time someone speaks."

As the Ingerman boy sat down, another figure, much shorter, was revealed to have been standing behind him. Hiccup found himself scowling. Astrid, the twins, Fishlegs, he could all forgive, some more than others. But Snotlout?

Not so much.

"What do you want?" he asked brusquely, not caring about how harsh his voice was.

To his credit, Snotlout didn't budge an inch. "Same as 'Legs," he said simply, as if that explained everything.

Hiccup's eyes flashed with anger, and Toothless bristled slightly at feeling his brother's upset. "That's it? After everything you've done, you just think you can be forgiven so easily?"

Snotlout's eyes hardened as well and his voice lowered to a whisper. "Yeah, I made your life pretty shitty at times, but do you really think I had much of a choice? Being friends with you meant being a disappointment, and let me tell you – your dad might be cold, but mine demands for me to be the best – no matter what I can or cannot do. Being friends with you would've meant living hell for _me_. And besides, did you not notice I ditched _Astrid Hofferson_ to hang out with you the moment you stopped being the village's disappointment?"

"I can understand those points," conceded Hiccup, far from done. "But then why didn't you act like Astrid? She definitely isn't my number one fan – but she never went out of her way just to bully me. If anything, when she did interact with me, she treated me neutrally enough. So why did you not?"

"That's not your business," Snotlout retorted harshly.

"Fine, then you can go back to your seat – far from here," Hiccup shot back immediately, knowing he wouldn't.

As predicted, he turned red in anger, but didn't move. "Fine! You so want to know? I picked on you because it made me feel better. Because it made me feel better of the worthless son I am to my father, better than the idiot I am to the village, better than the mediocre warrior I am in the ring. Because if I picked on you, there would've been someone under me in the food chain, and it made me feel better. Happy now?"

It still took him a few long, agonizing seconds – but in the end, Hiccup stopped whispering and nodded. "You can sit – but same as for the twins, this does not make us best buddies."

"I'll take that," Snotlout grumbled, knowing fully well that now Hiccup was the bigger fish and called the shots – which meant that humiliation or not, either he followed or he was out.

Toothless snorted, obviously not supporting Hiccup's decision, but going along with it just because his brother had.

**The scene changes to a catapult at night, with the Dragon Training mentor and recruits around a fire, roasting food. Gobber has a whole turkey-sized chicken, Fishlegs has two large chicken thighs, Hiccup has a fish, the others have small chickens. "And with one twist, it took my hand, and swallowed it whole," Gobber is narrating. "And I saw the look on his face – I was delicious!"**

The Gronckle who had eaten his leg rushed to a corner and then vomited molten rocks. "Yeah… delicious… sure…"

"Oi! I washed not three years ago!" protested Gobber, prompting many others, Vikings and dragons alike, to groan in disgust.

Snotlout snorted at Hiccup's choice of food. "Fish for a fishbone…"

Instead of getting angry, Hiccup decided to let Astrid do the work. "By that logic, he just said you're a chicken," he stated plainly. The black-haired boy paled before Astrid's fist impacted his face and sent him sprawled on the floor. Though he was way too used to being punched by Astrid, so he got back up quickly enough.

**"He must've passed the word because it wasn't a month before another one of them took my leg," Gobber concludes the tale, showing them his peg leg. The teens awe at this – all but Hiccup, who's not looking nor listening and just staring idly at the fire.**

Struck by a sudden, morbidly curious thought, Gobber turned to the dragons. "Hey, who of you ate my hand?"

The reptiles exchanged uncertain glances, until a Zippleback, Sadeyes and Sadscales, spoke up. "I think Foreverflame did it," she replied, as sad-sounding as her names implied. "Monstrous Nightmare – died seven or so years ago."

Spitelout scoffed. "Apparently, it wasn't really _forever_," he joked, referring to the dragon's name. A few Vikings chuckled awkwardly, but most didn't – especially the Dragons.

**However, Fishlegs has something to say. "Isn't it weird to think that your hand was inside a dragon?" he asked, making everything but Hiccup look at him. "Like, if your mind was still in control of it, you could've killed the dragon from the inside by… crushing his heart or something!"**

**Astrid, having just avoided being chicken-legged in the face by the husky teen, stare at him, a little weirded out. Tuffnut looks at him with a disbelieving deadpan. Hiccup doesn't even seem to have heard him.**

"I wonder, is that how Foreverflame died?" Meatlug thought out loud.

"No, it's impossible," Sandstone, the same beige Gronckle who had eaten Gobber's leg, replied. "I never felt his leg move – and he could've kicked me until I vomited."

"Can we please not talk about my mentor and friend's leg after it was eaten by a dragon?" Hiccup demanded tensely. He was grossed out, and honestly it was a very uncomfortable topic for him. Gobber now joked about it, but he was pretty sure that at the time, he hadn't had fun losing two of his limbs.

Sensing his distress, Toothless nudged him with his head. "You know what else is weird? That Fishlegs was the one saying that. I would've excepted the twins, or maybe Snotbutt, but not Fishlegs…"

A blond-haired Viking rose from the back of the crowd. "But I wasn't even there!"

Toothless turned to Hiccup, who sighed and shrugged. "Yes, we have a Snotbutt in our village. I did say horrible names are the usual around here – 'cept for Astrid, of course."

The girl smiled. Her parents were lucky not to have given her a stupid name – or she would've had words with them. 'Axe' and 'hurt' would've probably been among those words. Though, once one got over the 'runt of the village' meaning, the name 'Hiccup' wasn't too bad. 'Stoick' wasn't half bad either, nor was her father Harald. But yeah, most Vikings really had awful names.

**"I swear I'm so angry right now!" Snotlout seethes, glaring at his chicken and waving it around. "I'll avenge your beautiful hand and your beautiful foot."**

**Pointing his chicken stick to the others, specifically Astrid, he continues. "I'll chop off the legs of every dragon I fight." Almost as an afterthought, he adds something that ruins the whole statement. "With my face!"**

"Before any of you say anything, I was being stupid, okay?!" Snotlout exclaimed, trying to play damage control – with mixed results.

Oh, they didn't say much… but the dragons were definitely laughing, the teens were snickering and even most Vikings were chuckling. His father was just exasperated.

**"Nnh, nnh, nnh, nnh, nnh!" Gobber grunts in disagreement, tearing off a wing from the chicken he has. "No, it's the wings and the tails you really want. If it can't fly, it can't get away," he advises them, waving the chicken wing. "A downed dragon is a dead dragon."**

**As he speaks, the others make sounds of agreement – except for Hiccup, who proves to have been listening because his eyes widen at his mentor's words, worried for his new friend's safety.**

Hiccup smiled. Maybe that saying wouldn't be true for much longer. Toothless smiled alongside him. Without Hiccup, he hadn't had the artificial tailfin on when he'd been kidnapped, so there was no chance of accidentally spoiling the surprise.

**Then, Gobber yawns hugely and tosses the wing into the fire, waving his still semi-intact chicken around. "Alright, I'm off to bed. You should be too!" he tells them, even though no one has even eaten anything yet. "Tomorrow we get to the big boys. Slowly, but surely, making our way up to the Monstrous Nightmare! But who'll win the honour of killing it?"**

**The view pans from Fishlegs, who looks at Astrid and Ruffnut with an excited smile, to Ruffnut, who sits up excitedly, to Snotlout, who leans in with a grin, to Tuffnut, who nods confidently and leans his own stick against the grate shielding the fire, and finally to where Hiccup was once standing, now just his fish on a stick without the boy in sight. "It's gonna be me," he proclaims. "It's my destiny. See?"**

**As Tuffnut proceeds to prove why it was his destiny, Astrid notices Hiccup's absence. "Oh! Your mom let you get a tattoo?" Fishlegs asks excitedly.**

Hiccup blinked and stared hard at the screen before turning to Astrid. "You… actually noticed I was gone?" he asked, bewildered and -deep down- also happy that at least _someone_ had noticed he'd vanished without a word. "But… why? You were so angry at me…"

The girl sighed, a now familiar feeling of shame and regret and guilt making itself known again. "I was angry because I had almost died," she explained, recalling how she'd felt later. "I saw you sneak off without a word, and I wanted to see where you were going. But since you were running, I didn't feel like running after you – plus, the others would've noticed."

Despite the fact she'd basically said she didn't care enough to follow him, Hiccup continued to smile. No matter what, not even Gobber had noticed – and Gobber had been his only friend for years! And was his paternal figure! And his mentor! Also, he'd been crushing on Astrid since _forever_, and knowing she'd at least noticed he'd left left him slightly giddy.

**The other teens' voices fade away as Hiccup rushes down the stairs of the catapult, skipping several steps and outright jumping a few. At the top of the stairs, Astrid peeks over, trying to catch a glimpse of him. She leans out slightly, perplexed. She seems to think about it for a second before heading back to the others.**

**Music begins to play as the scene shows the lit fire at the catapult fading away alongside the teens, and the forge's window lighting up.**

**Hiccup, sitting down at his desk, picks up his pen and opens his notebook, which is laying over several drawings of the Night Fury in flight or with his wings open.**

Many a jaw fell open. "And then you say you can't draw well?" exclaimed Toothless. He drew even better than he'd thought!

Hiccup just shrugged, embarrassed.

"Hiccup, those are incredible!" Astrid told him, amazed by his skill at drawing and painting. "And the fact you've never been taught how to paint and draw only adds to them!"

"The lass is right, son," Stoick agreed immediately. "Those drawings are very well done." He chuckled awkwardly. "Though aside from Bucket, I fear no one else on Berk would be able to teach you anyway… and I doubt Bucket could."

Bucket looked around, confused as to why someone had said his name if they hadn't been addressing him. "I could what?"

"Nothing, Bucket," Mulch reassured him, patting his arm while the twins snickered. "Your name just came up."

"Came up where?"

The twins' snickers got louder.

**He opens at the page of the Night Fury's drawing, and re-draws the missing tailfin.**

**Rapid series of scenes. First Hiccup is pumping the bellows, lighting the coals and heating the forge. A longsword's red-hot blade is seen amongst the coals. Keeping a red-hot rod of metal with metal tongs, Hiccup lightly hammers the rod before blowing on it and plunging it into the water barrel.**

**He compares the metal rod to a blueprint of the tailfin he's building. Notes on how the rods should bend and move litter the page, but most of it is taken up by a sketch of the tailfin.**

Gobber's jaw dropped. "Lad, that's more complex than anything I've ever done! How- How in the nine realms did you manage that?!"

Hiccup shrugged and grinned. "It took a while – and it's still not perfect."

Still awestruck, the blacksmith forcefully elbowed the Chief. "Stoick, if he pulls that off, I'm retiring."

"Let's not jump to conclusions yet," Stoick hurried to reply. "Besides, he cannot handle everything on his own – what about letting him work on the more detailed and advanced designs while you do the rest?"

The dragons chortled in laughter. The detailed and advanced work was reserved for the apprentice, while the mentor was relegated to menial work.

Astrid glanced at the design, then down at her axe. She loved the weapon, she really did, but an efficient weapon was more important than sentimental value. "Hiccup, can I order an axe from you?"

Hiccup shrugged and pointed to the one she was holding with a smirk. "Done. Hope you are satisfied with the service." At her surprised and incredulous look, he shrugged. "Well, it's not like Gobber does all the weapons. And… I think this 'movie' thing made it pretty clear I liked you. So I kind of… asked him to let me do it?"

He was cute when he was embarrassed, she decided. With a slight smile, she nodded in thanks and pecked him on the cheek, stunning him into silence for a few seconds before he chuckled in elated disbelief.

Well, at least she hadn't broken him like the first time.

"Can you do another mace for me?" Snotlout asked, surprising everyone – including his friends and Hiccup. "What?" he defended himself. "I'm not buddy-buddy with him but I want a good weapon, and Gobber just said Hiccup's better than him!"

"Can you build us a flamethrower?" the twins asked excitedly.

"A new, more balanced hammer?" Fishlegs piped up timidly.

"Okay, slow down. First, Snotlout, yes I can. Second, twins, that's called making one of the worst mistakes in my life. Third, yes I can build another hammer," Hiccup replied to each of them. "But, not right now."

**He extracts metal nails from a shield with the tongs before lightly hammering one such heated-up nail. He places the resulting bolts on a leather pad before carefully measuring them with precision scales. Fitting them together to see if they worked, he then fixes one of the modified rods to a metal pad.**

**He is shown looking focused, almost frowning, his eyes now more evidently of the same colour as the Night Fury's.**

**He pushes some leather over the rods before the scene shows him holding the completed contraption – an artificial tailfin.**

**On the wall, a more basic design of that very tailfin is shown. Hiccup closes the fin with determination.**

Many 'whoa'ed at the construction of the artificial tailfin, while Toothless looked incredibly smug on his brother's behalf. He chose not to pass any comment, but everyone could practically _see_ the pride emanating in waves from the pitch black dragon.

After a few seconds of thinking, a Hideous Zippleback walked closer to Hiccup – and promptly was snarled at by Toothless. "Whoa! Calm down, not gonna harm him," the right head said while the left continued, looking down at their front paws – or rather front _paw_. "I just wanted to ask… if he could help me with my stump…"

Gobber, Stoick, most Vikings and most dragons were shaking their heads at the boy, who just shrugged. "If we can bring peace between Vikings and dragons, sure. Otherwise… I don't really have the ways and I'm probably gonna be watched closely once we go back… if we go back."

The Zippleback seemed a bit disappointed, but could understand. "Oh. Okay. Still, if it happens, my name is Grass and Wood." Hiccup glanced at their green-and-brown scales, nodding at the name.

"I'll keep that in mind," he nodded.

Astrid wanted to facepalm. There he was, the so-called 'Hiccup the Useless', ending the war by civilly talking to both sides. He really was cut from a different cloth.


	7. Failures and Successes

**_And I'm back from my exhausting and stupidly hard trip to my 'beloved' hometown (read: stupidly hot). Definitely didn't go the way I would've liked AND, if that wasn't enough, we got our campervan that has now decided to die on us._**

**_But! I had this written BEFORE I went on that trip, so... here we are! As for A Rose Too Many, I'll need a bit of time before I can get to writing it... especially since I'm not used to the Irish cold any more and my hands are freezing even with gloves!_**

**_Still, it's good to be back._**

Hiccup chuckled, remembering what would come soon after. "Oh dear Thor, now you'll see my first flight with Toothless," he laughed before grinning. "_And_ how I became so good in the arena! Finally! It was killing me not being able to answer all those questions!"

"Seriously?" asked Astrid, a bit disbelieving. "Just like that? There must be something else… You couldn't have gotten so good at fighting dragons by playing with one."

Hiccup grinned widely at her. "Watch and see."

**The scene shows the cove, with Hiccup carrying a huge basket larger than he is. "Heeey Toothless~" he calls out, nearing the black Night Fury, who gets up from the ground and stares at the basket, sniffing the air.**

"You called him Toothless?" asked Astrid, looking at him weirdly.

He rolled his eyes. "I'm guessing I'll be receiving a lot of questions for that one, so let me make this clear. I named him Toothless for three reasons. One, he liked and accepted it, which by itself is valid and unarguable. Two, it stuck from our first actual meeting. Three, it's a symbolic name."

"Symbolic?" repeated Gobber, scratching his unspeakables with his hook. "What do you mean, laddie?"

Hiccup shrugged. He knew Vikings weren't big on symbolism unless it was signs from the Gods or predictions of the future, but he didn't really care. "Toothless, which for a dragon is more or less like saying harmless. Not that he can't fight without his teeth but you get the idea. A weaponless Viking can still fight even though weaponless is a synonym of defenceless. I named him 'harmless' because he was harmless to me. In the middle of the Viking-Dragon war, when both races fought and killed each other almost daily, and when skirmishes were preferred over diplomacy, for the deadliest of dragons to be harmless to me meant a lot." He smiled and petted his non-blood brother, making him purr. "It meant there was still hope that the war wouldn't end in a bloodbath. That if we could make it work, then maybe so could others. And even if others could, we'd still have each other – because we would never hurt each other. We're harmless to each other."

Vikings and dragons alike looked at the pair, touched by the hidden meaning behind such a silly name. Gothi smiled and gently nudged Gobber with her staff. The man didn't even need to read any scribbling – especially since there was no sand or dirt on the floor. He smiled too. "Aye, the weakest amongst us turned out to be the best." He grinned at Stoick. "You were right, Stoick. He really is the greatest of us all."

Stoick could only nod with a smile.

Astrid, the one who had asked in the first place, looked at the dragon. Of course she should've expected a hidden meaning of some kind. That was Hiccup she was talking about! Where most Vikings would give fierce or horrible names to frighten their foes, Hiccup had apparently chosen a name with that was important to him. She didn't need to think a lot to know which one was better – the first one, but she admitted that the meaning behind that silly name was touching.

**Hiccup drops it on the ground, winded. "I brought breakfast. I hope- I hope you're hungry." With one final effort, he pushes the basket, making fish of all kinds spill on the ground. He exhales heavily. "Okay, that's disgusting…"**

Ruffnut made a little mental maths before reaching over to feel Hiccup up – much to his shock and Astrid's and Toothless's anger. Toothless pushed her away from his embarrassed brother and snarled at her. "What do you think you're doing, _krrgr_?" The last word was very obviously not one of the Norse vocabulary, a sound similar to a throaty growl.

Khor chuckled at the looks sent his way. "Sorry. No English translation for that one. But it's an insult which involves uncertain parentage, genetic lack of neurons and indecent behaviour."

"Hey! I was just checking how much muscles he's got," Ruffnut protested, offended by the insult – and she had every right to be. "He carried that basket all the way from the village! I'm not sure any of us would've been able to do that!"

"I could've!" Snotlout said, but was ignored by just about everyone except Tuffnut, who gave him a deadpan look.

"Keep your hands to yourself!" Astrid backed Toothless up, sitting a bit closer to the boy. Protectively or possessively, no one really knew.

Ruffnut grumbled, but sat back down without many other protests. Jeez, she'd only been curious. So what if she only went for guys with muscles and wanted to see if Hiccup could become Hotcup?

**Hiccup takes a breath before stepping around the fish, the prosthetic tailfin -which is longer than he's tall- still held under his arm. The dragon licks his lips. "Uh… We've got some salmon… Some nice Icelandic cod…" He lightly kicks said cod closer to the dragon. "And a whole smoked eel."**

**Wrong thing to say. Toothless, who had begun poking his snout in the pile, suddenly starts growling, eyes turned to slits. Curious and confused, Hiccup picks up the offending fish. Terrified, the Night Fury rears back and roars, already eyeing his surroundings as if he intends to flee.**

**Hiccup is quick to calm him down. "No no no, no no, no! It's okay…" He reaches out with his hand after throwing away the eel, to calm him down. Toothless sniffs it and snorts, still smelling the fish. Hiccup hurries to wipe the hand on his vest to clean it. "Yeah, I don't really like eel much either…" Satisfied that the spotted eel of death has vanished, Toothless starts to eat.**

Many dragons shuddered. Ugh, slimy little monsters. No wonder the Night Fury had backed away!

"Wha- Why- How-" Stoick sounded like a broken record. "Night Furies… are afraid… of _eels?!_"

Hiccup snorted, trying to conceal his laughter and failing. "Yeah, they are… big surprise, huh?"

"What surprises me is that _you_ don't like it," noted Gobber, scratching his moustache with his hook, the same he'd used to scratch… other places. "It's actually pretty good."

Hiccup just shrugged.

Tuffnut gasped. "What if he's a dragon himself?! That'd explain a _lot_!"

"The love for fire…" continued Ruffnut.

"His surprising hardiness…"

"His being fireproof…" Astrid raised an eyebrow. How did they know that?

"His strength despite his scrawniness…" Hiccup pouted at that one.

"His friendship with a Night Fury…"

"And now why he doesn't like eels!" Tuffnut finished triumphantly.

"If that wasn't a completely stupid and null idea, I'd say you have a point," Toothless yawned, bored by the twins. "But I'll say one thing – he may not have the body of a dragon, but he definitely has the soul of one."

**As the dragon starts to gorge down the fish, Hiccup slowly nods in approval. "Okay… Alright… That's it, just stick to the good stuff… And don't you mind me, I'll be just… back here… minding my own business…"**

"Wow, you're a horrible actor!" exclaimed Tuffnut.

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "That was mainly to calm myself down. Honestly, I'm not even sure he heard me." Glancing at Toothless, the dragon shrugged. "Yeah, just as I thought. Too busy eating."

"Eating is important," replied the dragon, snorting smoke at him. "If you don't prioritize food, then it's no surprise you're so thin."

Hiccup recoiled, faking hurt. "Toothless! You too!?"

The Night Fury snorted again and rolled his eyes.

**Hiccup sets down the tail while the dragon eats the fish one at a time, but very quickly. He tries to place it close to the dragon's tail, but he moves it away. After checking if the dragon had noticed him, Hiccup tries to adjust it, but again Toothless's tail swished farther. Moving it again, the tail swished up for a second, startling the boy.**

**"Uh… it's okay," he tries to reassure the limb before grabbing it with a hand and the prosthetic with the other. He tries to fit them together but Toothless is moving it again.**

**The dragon, meanwhile, found out that there were more fish in the basket and dived in… jerking his tail forwards and thus throwing Hiccup off once again.**

More and more chuckles echoed in the hall. "Sorry about that," Toothless apologized, trying not to snicker alongside just about everyone else.

Hiccup sighed and shrugged. "Everyone will probably be ridiculed one time or the other. I guess this is one of the Hiccup times."

"Or the Toothless times," replied Tuffnut. "He's the one who was moving the tail."

"Yeah, but I should've expected him not to be happy with a little Viking trying to put something on his tail without his permission," Hiccup was ready to defend his non-blood brother. "Though he _did_ move the tail away for some reason."

**Grunting in frustration, Hiccup puts a knee on the tail before straddling it, making sure that if it moves, he'll move with it. Then he fastens the buckle of the artificial tail fin.**

**Toothless stops eating, feeling him move and attach the prosthetic but not knowing what it is. The basket falls off his mouth. The dragon is curious and a bit suspicious. Narrowing his eyes, the Night Fury moves his natural tail fin a bit before Hiccup manages to fasten the upper buckle of the prosthetic.**

**When he realizes what's going on, Toothless's mouth falls open, his eyes widen, his ear frills lower and his wings drop in shock.**

Many burst in laughter once more at the dragon's quite funny jaw-drop. He really hadn't been expecting that, apparently.

Toothless shrugged. Before they judged him, they should try to lose a limb and suddenly feel it back for no apparent reason.

**Hiccup is shown fixing the last fastenings of the prosthetic, still straddling the tail, while behind him Toothless's wings open wide.**

**He sits back, blissfully unaware, and opens the tailfin a little bit. "Eh," he comments softly, admiring his work. "It's not too bad… it works…"**

"Not really," chuckled Hiccup, making the dragon chuckle as well.

"Is the dragon actually going to take off with you on his tail?" Gobber asked worriedly, something Stoick wanted to know too.

"He did," nodded the boy.

"Night Fury!" half the dragons scolded, not happy with the revelation. "The nice Viking hatchling could've gotten hurt!"

"Hey, how could I have known he would hang on?" he protested. "I thought he'd fall off at the start and not get too hurt!"

"Wait a second…" Astrid turned to Hiccup. "_Hang on?_"

He smiled sheepishly.

**Toothless tenses in preparation and takes off in a flash. Hiccup, still looking at the tail, suddenly finds himself in the air and holds on for dear life, crying out in fright and surprise.**

**The tail movements toss him up and down as he continues screaming. Toothless determinedly aims for the upper lip of the rocky walls that have been his prison for the past few days.**

**"Oh no no no no! Aaaah!" As soon as Hiccup focuses on the tail again, his fright turns into a frown and he stops screaming. The artificial tailfin isn't holding itself open like the skin one, so in the end it's not working. The leather is flapping uselessly and not helping the dragon fly – which means it's not going to make it.**

**Toothless tries to turn in mid-air but without the tailfin he falls down, heading straight for the ground and the walls.**

"Aaaaaah!" many screamed alongside the movie-Hiccup. "They're gonna crash!"

"No we did not," grinned Hiccup before frowning. "Well, not that time, at least."

"So you crashed later?" Astrid inquired, half-worried and half-annoyed.

"They were more like crash-landings," he defended himself, his dragon and their flying skills. "And besides, it's not like you can expect a never-thought-before invention to work perfectly on its first try – I was actually expecting it to tear off from the force of the wind. That's what crash tests are for."

"Then why didn't you 'crash test' your crazy machines?" asked Spitelout, scowling.

"Because Dad or Gobber more often than not would tell me to take them down after the first time they didn't work," replied Hiccup. "Being inventive is not the Viking way. You guys rely on stuff that you _know_ works in a certain way and does certain things. You would never use a sword as an arrow because that's not what it's built for. My machines were something none of you understood and thus not something Vikings could use – thought honestly, you could've at least _tried_, the one I took Toothless down with literally worked like an oversized crossbow. Way easier to use than one of your catapults."

"Aye, but the one before was some sort of weird water-launcher that no one even knew how it was supposed not to fall apart," Gobber cut in, remembering the invention. "Now, a water launcher? That's a good idea to extinguish fires and stuff. But adding a ballista over it and rotating blades around it? That's going too far."

"Then why did you not just take the water-launcher and forget the rest?" Hiccup shot back more than a little cross. After all, it wasn't like _any_ or _any part_ of his inventions had ever been positively received from the village.

"Because no one of us would've known _how_," Stoick intervened. "Hiccup, I don't think you realize how complicated your inventions are – or if you do, I think you are overestimating Vikings. Many of us can barely read, any of your designs would go right over our heads. Gobber might be able to understand them if he were to put himself into it, but he's always too busy with repairs and other stuff."

"I could teach you!" Hiccup protested again, not seeing the point. "If there's a will, there's a way. If you had actually been interested in that water launcher, you could've just had a couple of your workers spare a few hours a day and in a couple of weeks I would've taught them how to read my diagrams! Hel, I could've just re-designed the water launcher and removed the rest, if you just asked instead of just being disappointed and telling me to dismantle it!"

"Hiccup, we all know, the whole village knows, that for years you've been unhealthily obsessed with killing a dragon to prove yourself. Last time we asked you to remodel one of your inventions, it ended up with even more blades than before – just hidden spring-loaded ones," Gobber reminded him.

Just when Hiccup looked ready to explode, and Toothless not too far behind, Astrid decided it was enough. "And whose fault is it if he was obsessed with it?" she asked with a steady voice, even if inwardly she was slightly shaking at the prospect of speaking up against the Chief. "We've all, one time or the other, said or thought 'Hiccup is _not_ a dragon killer', haven't we? We've all thought that Hiccup would never be a warrior even if he's good at the forge, to the point no one of us ever thought of teaching him how to fight. Maybe we were right, maybe we were wrong. And yet we were all _expecting_ him to kill one, or to at least train to kill one, or we'd forever consider him 'Hiccup the Useless'. We never thought that if we wanted him to be a dragon fighter, we should've _trained_ him to be a dragon fighter. So he tried to meet those expectations with what he _did_ knew, not by trying to do something he did _not_ know."

Ignoring Hiccup's immediate change from angry to awestruck, and Toothless's growl agreeing with her, Spitelout bristled – though only a little since both Stoick and Gobber didn't seem to be about to retort. "Are you saying that it's all _our_ fault?! We told him thousands of times to stop building those things! How could we be _more_ clear than that?!"

"Yes, and you've also told him thousands of times to 'Viking up' and hurry to prove himself. Mixed signals much, huh?" Toothless snorted sarcastically. "How was he supposed to do that? By eating a yak a day until he was fat enough to look like a Viking?"

Shrieks of laughter and shouts of "Burn!" came from the dragons' side, but they went ignored in favour of the current argument.

"Sir, you said it yourself – you're only human and you make mistakes," Astrid continued, emboldened by the knowledge that the Chief hadn't cast her out yet for her words. "The whole village makes mistakes, me as well. And Hiccup too, even if he's too stubborn to admit that."

"Look who's talking…"

"I think it's safe to say that Hiccup _is_ Stoick's little mistake," Toothless stated callously, earning himself a hurt look from Hiccup before he continued. "But not because of Hiccup. Stoick's mistake lies in his faults as a parent, as a chief, and overall as someone who cared for him. While I will not, not now nor ever, say that you don't care for your son, however I will say that you've been showing it all in the wrong way. Too afraid of losing him like you lost his mother, you were and maybe still are blind to him, to what your actions were doing and to how he was hurting. You failed to be there for him because being there for him meant allowing him to take risks he was willing to take and you were not. All the while holding onto the hope that one day a miracle would happen and he would give you a reason not to worry about him any more. Isn't this exactly what the fat blacksmith said to you during that meeting?"

The dragon's accusing words silenced the whole hall.

"Do you want to know _why_ and _how_ Hiccup became obsessed with killing a dragon? Because I have a very good idea," the Night Fury continued, as merciless as one of his plasma blasts. "You were always so harsh to him whenever he put himself in danger because you were worried, but you were afraid of showing affection as that would fracture your reputation as Stoick the Vast. All the village, including Hiccup, thus supposed you were harsh because you were exasperated by his lacking as a Viking, and thus they all focused on _that_, because the Chief focused on _that_, Hiccup included. Ignoring all his other skills, all that mattered was that he wasn't Viking enough. And what makes a Viking such? Why, fighting of course!"

Toothless snorted a small plasma blast involuntarily, scorching the floor, and making people flinch. "But no one ever thought of training him because it's Viking _tradition_ to be trained by their own family until they get into Dragon Training. Said responsibility fell on you, but you were too worried that he would use such training to get into fights he couldn't win since you saw him as a runty Viking strong in will but not in body, which meant he never got that training. So he couldn't _fight_ a dragon to kill it – which left killing it from afar or with a trap. Traps can risk catching Vikings instead so he focused on what could bring down dragons – and whatever can shoot a dragon out of the sky can _definitely_ cause mass destruction. Bit by bit, frustrating disaster after frustrating disaster, insult after insult, everyone forgot _why_ Hiccup needed so much to kill a dragon and only saw the damage he did – which from what I've seen was mostly collateral, not direct. All you saw of his inventions was the destruction they accidentally caused."

Toothless snorted again, though this time no fireball came out. "Do you want to know what _I_ see? I see his determination to save a life he unwillingly ruined, I see his focus as he observes every tiniest malfunctioning with a keen eye I would be unable to match, I see his detailed work and careful craftsmanship to create something that will help his brother. I see his hope that it would work, his fear that it wouldn't, and his determination that it _will_ no matter how many tries it takes for him to get it to work. I feel his frustration and apologies every time something goes wrong and I feel him cheer for every problem he manages to solve. I see an incredibly sharp mind examining a _dragon's tail and wings_, things no Viking had ever observed non-violently before, to match Viking crafts with dragon flesh. And deep down, I see his promise – that he _will_ get me back in the air even if he has to spend his whole life trying. And I know he will." He glared at the villagers. "The only difference between me and you, is that I see him with flaws and strengths, and I support him no matter what. You don't. And the next time you upset my brother, you will pay with blood and fire."

Absolute silence befell the hall at the dragon's words and his final threat.

Hiccup blinked away the tears that threatened to overwhelm his vision and hugged Toothless's neck tightly, no words required to say just how important those words were for him. The dragon curled around him, not deigning the rest of the hall of a second glance. To him everyone, Viking or dragon, would never be as important as his non-blood brother.

Having realized the heaviness of the mood, all the dragons stood silent, not willing to butt in into such a personal discussion.

The village was murmuring, as if speaking too loud would break the spell and attract the ire of the Night Fury, talking about what had just been said. A lot had gone straight over their heads, but they had gotten the gist of it – they were to blame for what happened to Hiccup and they were the reason why he was like that. And for people who used to blame him for just about everything, the fact they were eventually the cause of it was a hard pill to swallow.

Fishlegs, Snotlout and the twins were mostly surprised – surprised that someone had actually pointed that out. True, they bullied -or in Fishlegs's case allowed to bully- Hiccup a lot and they had their reasons to, but it was also true they all feared being his friends because of how the _adults_ saw the boy. It made them wonder – had the adults treated him like a normal human being, would the teens have mistreated him as much? Probably not.

Astrid was furious, partly at Stoick, partly at the village itself, but mostly at herself. Shieldmaidens weren't just warriors, they were _just_ warriors, and she'd always wanted to be one – and yet she'd ignored the injustice that had been right in front of her for years. Oh, of course she'd known how poorly Hiccup was treated and all of that, and she'd felt sorry for him, but not only she'd never stepped in to make it fair, she'd never actually thought _why_ Hiccup was treated as such. She'd always assumed it was the accursed destruction his inventions caused, but Toothless made quite the point – _why_ had Hiccup started to build those machines? He was as far from violent as possible. She just couldn't see him willingly harm anyone or anything without a good reason to, food notwithstanding.

And worse still, what Toothless said made perfect sense, so perfect she hated herself for not seeing it sooner, and so obvious in hindsight. How had Hiccup not gone insane? For seven years at the very least he'd been treated like a social outcast for no apparent reason other than being a runt, and even then Hiccup was stronger than the twins, and she was just as lean as he was – she refused to say scrawny when describing herself. For a second, a memory of walking into the forge only to see an eight-year-old Hiccup crying in a corner of the forge, poorly comforted by Gobber, resurfaced in her mind, and she felt sick. He'd just been a child when it had all started.

Glancing at him, she wondered if Hiccup had actually remained sane or not. After all, he'd basically challenged death to a staring contest when he'd tried to befriend that Night Fury. Most of his inventions almost took his head off, and he overall looked like he could care less if he died or not. Oh, he'd run alright, but if she had to be honest… she'd say that he'd cringed more when his father had scolded him than when the Monstrous Nightmare had set the torch's pole on fire around him.

Just how far had he been pushed? As the saying went, madness was like a chasm – all it took was a little push. But what would happen if one were to receive a might shove instead?

For the first time ever, Astrid found herself slightly afraid of Hiccup. Then she looked at the boy, still crying against Toothless's scales like a child, and found her answer.

He'd been denied affection by everyone but Gobber ever since he was eight. He wasn't crazy – he just desperately held onto whatever shreds of affection he could get, be it from Vikings or from dragons.

She'd never thought that heartache could be more painful than a blow from an axe, yet she felt her heart breaking in a way not even Thor's hammer could've accomplished.

All it had taken for Hiccup to break down, had been for someone to finally, _finally_ defend him and prove the village wrong on what had basically been the reason why he'd been denied his childhood from eight on.

She hesitantly stepped closer, and after a second the dragon curled protectively around the boy lifted his tail just enough for her to pass – if she were to crawl. She didn't mind, it wasn't like she was even expecting him not to snap at her. Hiccup seemed not to have even noticed her, but his cries had gone from shocked sobs to quiet, grateful tears as he just rested his forehead against his frien- no, against his _brother's_ scales.

He was slightly startled when she hugged him from behind with no previous warning. "Wha-"

"I'm sorry." She hugged him tightly and pressed her face into his fur vest to prevent any tears of guilt from forming. "I- I should've _done_ something, I- You should hate me… you should hate _everyone_…" She glanced up at his shocked, tear-stained, blushing face. "W-Why do you _not_ hate me? Berk? Everyone?!"

He swallowed thickly, both from the extremely close contact with his crush and the question. "I… W-What would be the- the point anyway? Hating my- my home? My people?" He shook his head. "A-And besides… my inventions did cause a- a lot of- of- of chaos… I'm to blame too."

Before Astrid could reply, a Viking voice neither recognized was heard through the cocoon of Toothless's wings.

"But it's his fault too!" Astrid felt Hiccup tense in her arms. "He created all those weird things!"

Toothless tensed too, though in rage this time, but someone else beat him to it.

"Haven't you heard a single thing of what Night Fury just said, you dim-witted numbskull?!" a definitely draconic voice exclaimed. It was Skyblaze, if Toothless wasn't wrong. "And besides, he's just a hatchling! As adults, it should be your responsibility to guide him and find out what was hurting him, and you failed _miserably_ for almost a decade! So now you don't get to point fingers and blame a _child_, to use your word, just because you're too ashamed to admit it all started because of you. Certainly, young Hiccup could've _not_ built those machines, but then you would've treated him just as bad as you do now – because he'd be 'useless' in a fight, wouldn't he? And if not 'Useless', he'd be the 'Runt', or as Night Fury said you called him, 'Stoick's little mistake'! Speaking of which, oh great Chief, what kind of father doesn't notice his own son is losing the pleasure to live day by day?! A few more years, and his only purpose in life would've been to kill a dragon just to make you proud!"

Hiccup straightened, and Toothless retracted his wings to let him see. The two teens inside were shocked to see the literal horde of dragons that had settled around them, as if protecting them.

Astrid felt him shake in her arms.

Fortunately, it seemed like no one else had anything to say to argue with that, and thus Khor decided, with a wince, to un-pause the movie. They'd have a lot of time to talk once the scene ended… if they had anything to say. Vikings could be pretty stubborn.

**As they are about to crash, Hiccup pulls the artificial tailfin open. It catches the air and the dragon shoots back up half a foot away from the ground. He climbs vertically up in the air, eager to taste freedom once more and leave that damned cove behind.**

**"Oh my-" Hiccup, elated, keeps holding on with both legs cross around the tail, a hand holding the fin open and the other holding him steady. "It's working!"**

**Toothless makes a sharp turn that puts Hiccup upside-down, but he doesn't seem to mind. The dragon dives and flies a few feet over the surface of the lake, his reflection rushing below. The leather tailfin is shown to be a perfect replica of the natural one – and Hiccup made it with only a rough sketch. Wow, someone gives the boy a prize or something.**

Hiccup chuckled weakly, his shaking subsiding slowly but steadily until she couldn't feel it any more. However, she chose not to let him go. Holding him was kind of nice, did weird things to her stomach and heart, and it wasn't like there was a lot of space with a Night Fury curled around the two of them.

"Well, for someone's first flight, he's doing pretty good," commented Grass and Wood, the crippled Zippleback. "At least he's not falling."

"Watch what you say…" Hiccup mumbled.

**Amazed, Hiccup stares at the tailfin. "Yes! Yes, I did it!"**

**Hearing him, Toothless glances back and rolls his eyes. As funny as the human was, no way he'd bring him with him back at the Nest – which meant the little Viking hatchling had to gently get off. And a Night Fury's meaning of 'gentleness' was a bit different from a human.**

**With a sudden twist, the dragon flicked the boy off his day, making him skid on the water twice before falling into the lake with a scream.**

"Hiccup!" a dozen or more voices shouted in worry.

Hiccup snickered. "I was fine. Just a bit wet."

Ruffnut grinned. "Mmmh, wet Hiccup…"

The poor boy almost threw up while just about everyone who heard glared at the Thorston girl in disgust. Even Tuffnut. "Eugh, sis, ew!"

"What?" she was completely oblivious.

Astrid rolled her eyes. Hiccup might've been cute, but he wasn't hot. Him getting wet would probably make him look like a wet puppy. Which still was cute, but not hot.

**Without Hiccup keeping the tailfin open, Toothless can't turn well any longer. Glancing back at the problem, the tailfin is again flapping uselessly in the wind.**

**The Night Fury soon follows the boy into the lake, though in its case it didn't sink.**

**Hiccup jumps out of the water, throwing his arms up in victory. "Yeah!"**

"You just crash-landed into a lake and all you have to say is 'yeah'?" Stoick glared at his reckless idiot of a son.

Hiccup shrugged. "Hey, it was just a lake. It's not like we fell from thousands of feet up in the air."

"You did that later," Khor mumbled under his breath.

"The most I've ever fallen was a few dozen feet," the boy added calmly. "And even then, Toothless always shielded most of it."

The dragon grinned in pride. "I would _never_ let him fall. Even when he eventually grows his wings and learns how to fly, I'll always be there to catch him."

The touching speech was ruined by Stormfly's deadpan. "You do know that Viking hatchlings don't grow wings, right?"

Toothless frowned. "But Hiccup is a Night Fury at heart."

"But in body, he's a human," the Nadder reminded him, making him glance at Hiccup in confusion before he straightened.

"Well, _my_ brother _will_ learn how to fly _without_ wings, then!" he stubbornly claimed. "Just wait a few more years! I know he will! He's a creature of the sky and nothing will stop him from reaching it!"

Stormfly rolled her eyes. "Sure, we'll see."

**"Today is about teamwork!" Gobber's voice explains from off-screen.**

**A second later, the view changes to the Zippleback's double-door pen, now without the log keeping it closed. It bursts open and a huge cloud of smoke pours open, filling the arena.**

**The teens are armed with buckets today. Ruffnut backtracks while she's looking around, ending up near Astrid. Fishlegs and Hiccup back away from the smoke, close to each other. Snotlout and Tuffnut remain mostly stationary, and thus near each other.**

**"Now, a wet dragon head can't light its fire."**

"Not true," snorted Hookfang, irritated by the arrogant claim. "Only the Twin Heads can't."

Barf snickered while Belch grumbled. "It's because for us it's different! Most dragons light their fire in the back of their throat, but to light that moron's gas I have to spark it _outside_ my mouth, so if I'm wet I can't!"

"Wait, Twin Heads?" Hiccup repeated. "Is that how you call the Zipplebacks?"

"Yes," nodded Meatlug, grinning cheerfully. "I don't know why you call them 'hideous' or 'zippleback' since they aren't ugly nor breath lightning."

"No idea," shrugged the boy. "How do you call Night Furies?"

"That's easy, Nightspawns," chortled the Nadder Evergreen. "That, or overgrown kitties or puppies."

Toothless growled while the teens and the Viking laughed.

**Gobber is strolling around the arena with a grin as he speaks. "The Hideous Zippleback is ****_extra_**** tricky. One head breathes the gas, the other head lights it! Your job is to know which is which."**

"And said job is literally impossible," grumbled Snotlout.

"Actually, the right head breathes the gas, the left one sparks it," Grass and Wood explained helpfully. "Other than that, yeah you're right, it is hard to tell the two heads apart. Sometimes even we have trouble recognizing other Zipplebacks' heads."

**Astrid finally exchanged her usual scowl for a determined frown. Making progress girl! She and Ruffnut stare at the smoke that surrounds them as if it were alive, leaving them in the clear… for now.**

**Hiccup and Fishlegs are facing opposite directions and holding onto their buckets, scanning the smoke. Hiccup looks apprehensive, but not too nervous. Fishlegs is instead more worried and is trying to calm himself down in the only way he knows how.**

**"Razor sharp serrated teeth, injects venom for pre-digestion, prefers ambush attacks, crushing its victims-"**

**Hiccup peeks out from behind him, the view having circled around the larger boy, with an annoyed scowl. "Could you please stop that?!" he hisses, shutting the other boy up.**

"Wow, Hiccup can get angry~" Tuffnut sang teasingly. "And he can shut Fish up! That's a first!"

"He was probably shocked that Hiccup had actually told him to shut it like that," Astrid shrugged nonchalantly, secretly glad the movie had at least stopped pointing out her scowls.

**A wide-eyed, attentive Astrid is shown for a second before the view passes to Snotlout and Tuffnut.**

Hiccup blushed slightly. Astrid was already pretty when she was scowling, when she wasn't she was just gorgeous.

**Snotlout looks kinda nervous, but he's hiding it well. Tuffnut, with the characteristic Thorston twins lack of common sense, is grinning like an idiot. "If that dragon shows either of his faces…" Snotlout threatens. "I'm gonna-"**

**He sees a tall, vaguely darker shape in the smoke and elbows Tuffnut. "There!" he shouts, throwing the bucket's load of water at it. Tuffnut, simple-minded as he is, follows suit.**

Astrid and Ruffnut glared at the boys, making everyone else wonder what had just happened.

**A feminine, ****_human_**** cry of surprise is all the answers they get. The smoke clears a bit. Ruffnut and Astrid emerge from the smoke, unamused. "Hey, it's us, idiots," says Ruffnut. Hey kettle, I'm pot, do you know you're black?**

"Oh, so that's why you're angry," noted Gobber.

No one knew what was that about the pot and the kettle.

**Snotlout and Tuffnut are slightly surprised and disappointed at finding out they didn't hit the dragon – though Tuffnut chooses that moment to be exceptionally stupid. "Your butts are getting bigger. We thought you were a dragon!"**

**He chuckles stupidly while Snotlout tries to fix his friend's grave mistake. "Not that there's anything wrong with a dragonesque fig-" he fails at appeasing the girls' anger and promptly receives a punch to the face courtesy of Astrid. Oh well, at least he tried.**

**Tuffnut instead gets Ruffnut's bucket thrown into his face. Ouch.**

No one commented or dared to laugh. The females of both races fully agreed with the girls, and most of the males as well. It wasn't just avoiding the girls' wrath, that had just been plain rude!

If someone were to tell Gobber to his face that he was fat, he'd club them on the head! …Well, except if Hiccup did it, which he did at least three times a day.

"I honestly thought you were flirting," Astrid noted off-handedly, glancing at Snotlout, who shrugged.

"I was fearing for my life." He didn't add that Astrid was scarier than any dragon, but it was implicit and the feeling was shared by many others. The dragons, a few adult Vikings, and Hiccup all disagreed, having seen scarier dragons or just plainly being basically immune to intimidation – in Hiccup's case, because he was far too used to it.

**Tuffnut falls on his butt and sits up. Then, something grabs him and drags him into the smoke with a yelp. Tuffnut's yelps and cries fills the silence.**

**Ruffnut, concerned, makes to step forwards but is held back by Astrid, who readies her bucket. "Wait."**

**"Ahh! Ahh! Oh no!" Tuffnut continues to lament.**

"You basically left me to fend for myself!" Tuffnut protested, incensed. "I could've died and you wouldn't have even cared!"

"Gobber was there. This time, right in the arena. Stop whining."

Hiccup coughed into his fist. "He actually has a point. What good is knowing how to fight dragons if you don't do it to protect your people?"

Astrid shot him a dirty look.

**A green tail swipes them off their feet, making them fall flat on their backs with identical cries of surprise. Tuffnut reappears, totally unharmed, and scrambles over his sister in an attempt to get away. "Ohhh! Oh I'm hurt, I am very much hurt!"**

"See?" Astrid commented smugly. "He's fine. Just scared. Had he actually cried for help, I would've helped."

Hiccup shot her a doubtful look, but kept silent. Some things just weren't worth arguing over. The Thorston twins were two such things.

**He scrambles past Hiccup and Fishlegs, the latter of which thinks it's time for a statistical prediction. "Chances of survival are dwindling into single digits now…"**

"I. Was. There!" Gobber exclaimed, irritated. "The only one who was in actual danger was Hiccup!"

Stoick glared at him. "Were you trying to get him killed?!"

Gobber shrugged. "Stoick, you don't know the lad like I do, sad as it sounds. Hiccup may get in trouble a lot, but he _always_ manages to find a way to wiggle out of harm's way. And he's not exactly easy to scare, considering he spent his free time with a Night Fury!"

"You didn't know that!"

"Children, children," Stormfly chided in. "Let's just watch this, okay? Hiccup is safe and sound, if a bit thin. No need to lick your wounds before you've gotten hurt."

Toothless and many other dragons hid their smirks at seeing her addressing the two largest Vikings in such a way.

**A single green dragon head on a spindly snake-like neck slithers into view. Hiccup steps aside with a curious frown on his face, probably trying to understand which head that was. Fishlegs, instead, panics and tries to shy away. The head draws closer, until…**

**Fishlegs has it right in front of him, and throws the water at it. The head leaks gas. He chuckles nervously. "Oh… Wrong head…"**

**Not appreciating the shower, the dragon sprays gas at him, and he runs away screaming. Gobber calls out his name in worry, but the boy is just fine.**

"Nice scream, Fatlegs," snickered Snotlout, earning himself a dirty look from the boy.

"Well, at least he didn't throw water at his own allies," Astrid reminded him with a smirk, making him scowl.

"That's what the lesson was about," stated Gobber. "And… you all failed pretty miserably. Actually, now that I think of it, thus far the whole training thing has been pretty underwhelming. The only good fighting I've seen was from when Astrid hit the Nadder with her axe. Other than that, I've seen children getting knocked around, and Hiccup first struggling and then breezing through it."

Stoick groaned. Those were just the news he needed – the newest generation was made up by morons.

**A second head appears, revealing the two-headed green dragon. "Now, Hiccup!" Gobber encourages him from off-screen. The boy takes a couple of steps closer and tries to toss the water upwards – it barely goes up five feet from coming back down. All the while, the dragon looks unimpressed.**

**And then it chooses to lower its head to close in on the boy, who just mutters a very sarcastic "Oh, come on…" with his bucket still raised.**

Everyone looked at Hiccup. "How did you fail that throw?" Tuffnut asked, incredulous.

Hiccup bristled slightly. "Well, excuse me if I'm the only teen who's never once been in the fire brigade and thus never has to throw buckets of water."

"He's got a point," noted Rockjaw, a dark brown Gronckle.

"Yes, but still, that was a pretty easy throw," noted Snotlout.

"Less easy than you'd think," mumbled Mulch, though he didn't say it out loud. It was true, one had to know how to handle a bucket or they'd throw it wrong.

**The large dragon snarls and lunges at Hiccup, spreading its wings to look bigger. The boy falls on his butt and awkwardly crawls back. The left head is sparking menacingly.**

**"Hiccup!" Ready to butt in, Gobber runs forwards only to stop when he sees something that shocks him.**

**The dragon is, incredibly, backing off as if repelled by the boy, who gets back on his feet and pushes the creature back. "Back! Back! Back!"**

**"Now, don't you make me tell you again!" he threatens off-screen while the teens look on in absolute shock and wonder. Everyone is wide-eyed and slack-jawed.**

**"Yes yes, right, back, into your cage." Gothi, the millennia-old-looking village Elder and healer and wisewoman, looks on from the arena's outer catwalks and frowns in confusion and thought.**

Everyone was completely slack-jawed, even Toothless, while Hiccup was trying his hardest not to burst out laughing at their priceless expressions. Despite it being actually the second time they'd seen that, even the ones who were present at the time were shocked again.

"How- How- How-" For the second time that day, Stoick sounded like a broken record. "Wha- Whe- W- W-"

Gobber sighed and scratched his moustache. "Still no idea how _that_ happened."

"You'll see soon," Hiccup smiled cryptically.

**Arms still outstretched, Hiccup opens his vest ever so slightly to retrieve the black-and-yellow eel he still had on his person, and throws it into the cage, making the dragon back away even more. "Now think about what you've done."**

"Note to self, never challenge anyone with hidden eels," Barf noted glumly.

The Vikings would've fallen out of their seats, hadn't they been seated on the cold, hard floor. An eel. A freaking _eel_ was how Hiccup had terrified the Hideous Zippleback into submission.

Then Tuffnut began to laugh uncontrollably, soon followed by Ruffnut, Snotlout and the rest of the teens, and bit by bit all the Vikings began laughing like there was no tomorrow. Some arrived to have tears of mirth in their eyes.

Barf and Belch sulked a lot because of all the laughter. "They'd do the same if they were to go one-on-one against a Night Fury."

"Or against the Blood Tyrant," Fanghook, the same Nightmare Gustav Larson would later tame, befriend and train, commented. "That one would send any Viking either to an early, shallow grave or running for their lives."

"Blood Tyrant?" asked Hiccup, confused by the name.

"You've never seen her," the dragon replied, and then shuddered. "And you're lucky for that. Hope you'll never seen her. The Blood Tyrant is as cruel as she is powerful."

Stoick and Spitelout exchanged a glance. For a Monstrous Nightmare to say that, it meant that whatever that 'Blood Tyrant' was, it was strong. Aside from the Night Fury, the Monstrous Nightmare was the strongest dragon they regularly fought. Sure, there were stronger dragons in the Book of Dragons, like Thunderdrums, Skrills, Scauldrons, Whispering Deaths, Changewings, Snaptrappers and all those rare dragons, but almost no one on Berk had ever fought one.

**Hiccup slams the doors shut and wipes his hands on his vest. On the foreground, Gobber's hand is seen, unmoving. Hiccup turns around and freezes at the stares he's getting.**

**Everyone is wide-eyed and so dumbstruck Fishlegs' bucket slips from his limp fingers. No one of them is even breathing. A moderate breeze is heard on the background, the only sound in the arena.**

**Hiccup smiles nervously. "Okay!" he says, faking excitement. "So, are we done? 'Cause I've got some things I need to…" He trails off, not sure how to put it without giving himself away. He inches away from them. "Eh… Ye- Yep, I'll- I'll see you tomorrow!"**

**The teens continue to stare after him. Astrid slowly blinks once, glancing from the now closed cage -from which the dragon is completely silent- to the retreating boy with a mix of shock and awe slash respect.**

Hiccup blushed again. Damn it, did Astrid know how pretty she was when her facial features were relaxed and not contracted in a scowl? Not that her scowls weren't attractive as well, but the point still stood.

Noticing his blush and easily guessing the reason, Astrid allowed herself a small smirk. Some things wouldn't change so easily, it seemed.

Still, she truly did respect Hiccup a lot for that stunt. Respect that had soon turned into envious suspicion, and that had now turned back into respect. He hadn't used the Viking way but hey, he'd proven that the Viking way was stupid and outdated anyway with everything he'd done and said. And she'd be lying if she said she hadn't found it hot at the time – but only a little bit!

Stoick exploded in laughter. "That's my boy!" he exclaimed, socking Spitelout in the shoulder and knocking him to the ground. "Always ten steps ahead of everyone else!"

"No wonder he was head and shoulders above the rest!" laughed Gobber. "If he's learned so much from that Night Fury, the other dragons must've looked like little lost sheep he just had to herd back into their pens!"

The dragons bristled at being compared to sheep, but they had to admit Hiccup had played them and handled them pretty well, all without getting anyone hurt… Well, without hurting himself or anyone by his own hands, at least. The other teens had gotten their fair share of hits.

Still, going back to the most important scene, they knew the tailfin had yet to work, so they were eager to find out how Hiccup would solve that seemingly unsolvable problem. The artificial tailfin wouldn't stay open unless there was someone -Hiccup- holding onto the tail to keep it open by hand. Which couldn't work at all.

Which was why Hiccup would probably find a way to make it happen.

**_Author comment: Hiccup's inventions. I think Hiccup had good ideas, but didn't make enough tests and always overdid it, which led to his inventions being quite dangerous. Because honestly, all the other inventions we see in movies and series are great, so... all the same, I think Hiccup might not have liked being ridicules for his inventions._**

**_And finally someone points out why it all happened. I mean, come on, Hiccup is the peacekeeper of the franchise, the one who has to be pushed as far as possible and beyond before fighting to kill, and yet no one ever wondered why he built machines of mass destruction? Even his Inferno, later, is more to calm wild dragons than to fight!_**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh._**


	8. Catching Up to the Future

**_Really can't apologize enough. I meant to upload this like, two days ago, but I got a tad too busy watching Race to the Edge. Though, can you blame me? What kind of HTTYD writer would I be if I didn't watch RTTE?_**

Khor smirked as the screen began showing a quick sequence of snippets. Soon they'd be seeing the future. Who knew how they would react to what they would do in the future… though he was pretty sure Astrid would demand a flight once the kidnapping slash date took place.

Oh, and of course, he was curious as to how they would react to the Red Death. The giant lump of fat was really really big, almost as big as Snotlout's ego.

And _of course_, he was excited to see how Toothless would react to being able to fly once again, albeit with Hiccup. He didn't think the dragon would particularly mind having to share flight with a human.

**Cheerful, upbeat music begins to play as Hiccup is shown gently hammering a sheet of leather, and then sewing it with a large needle. All the while, the boy sports a peaceful little smile.**

Stoick smiled at how relaxed Hiccup was. It was years since he'd last seen him like that. In all honesty, even Gobber had rarely seen him like that. At the forge he was witty, sarcastic, easygoing and upbeat, but not _relaxed_. There was still an underlying sadness and tenseness in the boy, _especially_ whenever he allowed himself to open up a little instead of putting up a pretence.

Toothless glanced at the two, sensing their surprise but not understanding it. _'Weird humans… thank the skies Hiccup's more like a dragon than a human.'_

As it had become routine, many dragons awwed at him, wishing they could adopt him as their hatchling – which made some of the youngest dragons sulk a bit.

**Hiccup approaches the finished saddles, complete with stirrups, and brushes off inexistent dust from it before lifting it up.**

**As he does it, the scene shifts to him keeping it up at the cove, in front of Toothless. Said dragon croons before taking off running. Hiccup ran after him. "Hey!"**

**The dragon passes by again, tongue lolling out as he looks back at the boy, who is running after him with the saddle held over his head.**

Vikings and dragons alike chuckled at the childish, but admittedly fun, game. Only a few days, and already they acted like children/hatchlings grown together. Though given what Hiccup had just created, maybe extremely-skilled-at-what-they-did children.

"Damn," Gobber whistled, impressed. "I never taught him how to do _that_! I mean, a saddle? We've never needed one since we don't have horses, but I might've given him a tip or two and maybe a book with some designs from Trader Johann, but a _dragon saddle_?! Especially since he probably didn't even know the dragon's measurements!?"

Hiccup blushed cherry red. Recognition and respect were what he'd always wanted ever since he could smith, but now he found out that the truth was… he was woefully unprepared to receive them.

Toothless grinned, feeling proud in his stead once again.

**The scene changes to Toothless flying over the cove's lake with Hiccup riding on his back, just behind his neck, a rope in hand. The rope is shown to be tied to the tailfin.**

**The view changes from their front. Hiccup tries to pull the fin open, but something goes wrong, the dragon goes left and Hiccup goes down. Vertically.**

People and dragon snickered at how the 'movie' had put it. And yes, they'd decided to call it movie since it was much much easier, but they'd still use the quote-unquote since it wasn't a word they really used much.

"How many times did you fall?" Snotlout asked with a smirk.

"It'd be easier to count the times I _didn't_… which are none, now that I think of it. So… lots and lots of times…" Hiccup replied glumly. "But hey, better fall now that we're three feet off the ground than fall when we're a mile up in the sky."

"You shouldn't even think of going a mile up in the sky without proper practice!" Stoick exclaimed, shocked by his son's lack of survival instinct.

The boy looked at him, surprised. "Are you giving me permission to train with my dragon more?"

"'t's not like you're gonna stop if I don't," the Chief grumbled, making people snicker again at Hiccup's expenses. "But yes, as long as you don't get yourself killed."

Surprised, Hiccup smiled widely.

**A leather clip is attached to a hook. The view widens to show Hiccup wearing a belt to which the clip is tied, and the hook is on the saddle. He gives a little shake to the saddle to test it.**

"You're gonna have to pull harder if you want to test it," Gobber remarked wisely.

"Well, now I know…"

**Hiccup and Toothless manage to fly out of the cove. The saddle now has a rudimentary fin control in the form of the rope being tied to a log on the back of the saddle.**

"Yeah, you did it-"

**They soon lose control as the fin is either always open or always closed, and crash-land into a patch of tall, pale green grass.**

"Never mind," Gobber finished with a sigh, causing Hiccup to blush in embarrassment.

**Hiccup stumbles into view, parting the stems of the grass, before going back to check on his dragon. A loud purring noise is heard. Hiccup find his fierce dragon… and promptly frowns in confusion. Toothless is shown rolling in the grass, purring like a giant cat, pushing his head into the grass, ecstatic.**

"He's adorable!" the crippled Zippleback, Grass and Wood, cooed. "Look at him!"

"What is that?" Astrid asked, confused.

Hiccup smiled and shrugged. "I call it dragon nip. It causes dragons to… well, do that."

Stoick scratched his beard. How many other tricks did Hiccup find out? He frowned. If he used in the ring like he used that eel, he'd prove everyone that fighting dragons was just plain stupid with how many other ways there were to handle them.

**Hiccup examines some strands of grass he picked. Scene fades into the ring, with Tuffnut being headbutted away by a Gronckle, spear and shield comically dropping on the floor.**

**The angry dragon then dives at Hiccup, who cringes and holds out his handful of grass. Smelling it, the dragon crashes and slides to a stop right in front of him. Pushing the grass closer to its nose, Hiccup sends the dragon in lalaland. The Gronckle falls over, tail wagging wildly.**

Another round of laughter met that scene, and this time Hiccup joined in.

Meatlug didn't really understand what she did wrong, so she just shrugged. "You'd do that too if you'd been in my place."

**More Vikings come to watch in awe, while the Elder Gothi, aka the Ancient Old Hag, frowns in suspicion.**

Gothi frowned and walked up to the wall while the others were hiding their smirks. She gave the screen a healthy wack with her staff and a pained 'ow!' was heard before she walked back.

**Correction – More Vikings come to watch in awe, while the Great Elder Gothi the Wise and Powerful frowns in suspicion.**

Gothi nodded in approval.

The smirks were replaced with nervous sweating from everyone.

**The teens are crossing a large wooden bridge that leads back to the village. Astrid lags behind while everyone crowds around Hiccup.**

**Tuffnut, who was talking, gets pushed away by Ruffnut, who is smiling at Hiccup in admiration. Snotlout gestures wildly while he compliments Hiccup. "I- I've never seen a Gronckle do that before!"**

**Oddly enough, around Hiccup the gang is all smiling.**

**Maybe being around Astrid makes them catch the Scowl Syndrome?**

Astrid's howl of rage was drowned out by the laughter that exploded in the hall, mostly on the Viking side.

**"I-I-I left my axe back in the ring… You guys go on ahead- Ah!" Hiccup makes up a pathetic excuse and tries to go back, almost bumping into Astrid, who's startled as well. "I-I'll catch up with you!"**

"Your axe was destroyed by the Nadder," a random Viking called out.

"I gave him a new one, what do you think, that I'd let my students face dragons without weapons?!" Gobber shot back, irritated, before glaring at whoever was staring at him. That someone turned out to be a smirking Hiccup. "Shut it, toothpick."

"I didn't even say anything."

"You don't need to."

**Snotlout is confused, Ruffnut is in awe, Tuffnut and Fishlegs are smiling in admiration. Of course, who's not smiling? Astrid Hofferson, obviously, who is instead glowering at Hiccup's retreating back.**

The laughter was immediately back while Hiccup was trying to stop Astrid from axing the wall to pieces.

"Well, it's not like it's an insult, right?" He winced when her murderous glare turned to him. "I- I mean, it still means you were catching on while they weren't, right?"

Huffing but slightly pacified, she sat back down before socking him in the arm. "OW! Why would you do that?!"

"That's for stopping me."

There was no follow-up kiss this time.

**Scene changes to the cove, where Toothless is enjoy a vigorous and thorough scratching session. Hiccup happily scratches him behind his ears, under his neck, and the dragon goes down faster than a house of cards in a storm.**

**He's shown to be just very very pleased, almost asleep. Hiccup examines his hands with a smile and walks towards the camera.**

**The view changes to Astrid throwing her axe at the Deadly Nadder, which headbutts it away and continues charging at the girl. She rolls away.**

Snotlout grinned. "See? We both failed at throwing our weapon at the same dragon, we're so similar! It must be f-" _Sock_. And there went Snotlout, counting the stars in his vision.

**Hiccup, behind her, drops the heavy spiked mace he was holding and flinches.**

Stoick was about to yell at him to at least dodge.

**The dragon, curious, stops in front of him without attacking and starts sniffing him.**

The Chief groaned and gave up. He admitted it, he knew absolutely nothing about dragons.

"Did he stop only because Hiccup had dropped his weapon?" Fishlegs asked in amazement.

"Yes, because as opposite to everyone else he wasn't aggressive – never been," Stormfly replied stiffly before glaring at him. "Also, I'm a female, thank you very much…"

Fishlegs shrank. "S-Sorry…"

**A battle cry is heard, the dragon looks to the side and Astrid is shown charging at the dragon with her newly retrieved axe. Taking advantage of the distraction, Hiccup reaches out and start scratching the dragon's neck, searching for the spot he used on Toothless.**

**Just as Astrid arrives, he finds it and the Nadder drops to the ground, knocked out by the boy.**

**Astrid groans as she looks at him with a mix of surprise, defeat and what looks like desperation.**

Hiccup frowned and turned to the girl, who just tried to shrug it off. He didn't buy it. "I thought lying was my thing since, you know, hiding my dragon best friend for weeks?"

"What are you talking about?" she replied sharply, reminding him that even if they were kind of maybe tentative friends or something, it was still a fairly recent connection.

"Why did you look like that? I didn't notice it earlier because, you know, large dragon right in front of me, but why did you look so… desperate?" Hiccup flinched when Astrid's glare got, if anything, sharper.

She didn't reply.

How could she? There was no way she'd tell him, or anyone for all that matter, the truth, and if she wasn't gonna tell the truth then why say something at all?

"Astrid, please. I mean, it's not I'm gonna make fun of you… that's kind of my role… I just want to help…"

Damn him. Now he was guilt-tripping her. And it was damn efficient too.

She grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him closer, not willing to let anyone else hear. "Fine. You want to know? I'm _Astrid Hofferson_. Up until a couple of hours ago, my reputation, and becoming the greatest warrior of Berk, was my greatest and only dream." And he'd gone and destroyed it, she didn't add. "And then you started taking that from me, and I couldn't catch up no matter how hard I tried." And that hurt more than she'd ever imagined, she didn't say. "I didn't like losing." Because as empty as that was, being the perfect warrior had been her only dream since she could remember.

She didn't say a lot of things.

But Hiccup was too familiar with things not said to miss them.

He looked down in shame. "I'm sorry, I…" He honestly hadn't even been _trying_ to win those things. "I didn't know how to fight, so I did what I could…" Because the alternative was dying. "I mean… I didn't even want to fight dragons, I told Dad before I even began Dragon Training…" He'd been running away from his peers just to spend time with his only true friend, for Thor's sake!

Fortunately for him, Astrid might not have had a lot of practice with things unsaid, but she was better at reading people.

She backed off. He backed off. Neither spoke.

It hadn't been his fault, she knew that. It had been hers. She'd focused too much on a single dream, and when that dream had suddenly got harder, maybe impossible, she'd snapped. He hadn't even tried to get in her way… he'd just tried to get through the classes without getting hurt.

**In the Great Hall, Hiccup moves to try and take a seat at an empty table. As soon as he's seated, he's spotted by the others. The gang except for Astrid immediately hurries over, as well as several adults, all spouting questions or exclaiming stuff like there was no tomorrow.**

**Astrid, left alone, slams her wooden mug on the table with an angry grunt.**

Hiccup looked sheepish. "Sorry?"

"Actually, I was angry more at them then at you," she replied with a glare towards the others. "You didn't even try to sit near them…"

He shrugged. Old habits die hard.

**A bright spot of light moves on the wall and slides on the ground. Toothless appears, trying to paw at it like a giant, scaly black cat.**

The hall erupted into laughter on the Viking's side while the dragons wondered what that spot was.

"It's like a giant cat!" laughed Snotlout, making the dragon sulk.

"More or less, his personality matches it too," Hiccup replied, rubbing his friend's snout with a smile.

**The dragon chases the spot of light over the grass, not minding Hiccup who, with a little hammer, is the one reflecting the light. Look at that little smirk, he's totally enjoying tricking that dragon. Poor reptile.**

The Vikings snickered again, though Toothless glared at Hiccup, seeing that the hammer reflected light similar to water or shiny dragon scales put everything in a different light. He grumbled at being played and laid down.

**"Meet the Terrible Terror," announces Gobber. A heavy metal door is being unlocked, the log keeping it closed slowly lifting off. Nothing happens from a second, before a tiny green dragon scampers out of a porthole, and promptly licks his eye, feeling curious.**

Tuffnut rubbed his nose and glared at the swarm of Terrors on the dragon's side. "That hurt!"

"So did being squashed by your weight!" the Terror shouted back.

Many adults smirked, remembering the embarrassing failure for the boy… and then promptly smacked themselves as they remembered how Hiccup had won.

**"Ha!" laughs Tuffnut, pointing at it with his spear hand. "It's like the size of my-"**

**He doesn't get to finish. Maybe to stop him from saying something that'll forever scar everyone, the dragon launches himself at his face. Noble hero sacrificing himself, he will be remembered. The other teens are shocked while the crowd starts to laugh.**

The Terrible Terror grinned and puffed out his chest. He _loved_ being praised.

"Now I can finish that sentence!" Tuffnut exclaimed, eyes shining.

"Tuff, don't do it," Astrid warned.

"It's the size of my-"

"NO!"

"-head!" The male twin looked around as everyone sighed in relief. "What? Did you really think I was gonna say _that_? Of course I wouldn't! Only Hiccup's that big!"

Choked laughs and coughs exploded in the hall as everyone turned to look at Hiccup, who had mysteriously vanished from sight. Astrid herself didn't know if she wanted to kill or thank Tuffnut for that -honestly, likely exaggerated- information. Maybe both.

Stoick burst out laughing even more. "So that's where all my 'Vast-ness' went!"

"Stoick!" Spitelout almost shrieked.

"I don't understand." Toothless seemed to be speaking to a lump under his left wing. Which kind of solved the mystery of where Hiccup had gone. "I thought it was a good thing to have a big-"

"SHUT UP TOOTHLESS OR I'LL MAKE YOU LIVE UP TO YOUR NAME!" Hiccup's threat, even when drowned in pure embarrassment, was enough to make the dragon's mouth click shut.

Tuffnut shrugged at the chaos he just created before he lit up. "Hey, sis, one new addition to the list of proof that Hiccup's secretly a dragon! He's dragon-sized!" he stated cheerfully, even though people should always take what a Thornston said with more than a pinch of caution – they weren't known for being very intelligent, after all.

Several hundreds pounds of footwear then buried him, courtesy of Hiccup who, without even realizing, had found out food wasn't the only thing that appeared out of nowhere thanks to the Gods.

**"Ow! Get if off!" The dragon is shown chewing on Tuffnut's nose. A bright spot of light appears on the boy's cheek and the dragon follows it down, to the arena's floor and away from the Viking, who promptly starts to wail "Ohhh, I'm hurt! I am very much hurt."**

Astrid gave Tuffnut, whose head was now peeking from the top of the mountain of boots, a very unimpressed look that was only partially ruined by her still very much red cheeks.

**Hiccup is shown leading the dragon back into his cage, using the shield to reflect the light. Way to go, kiddo! Use that big brain of your!**

**Meanwhile, the crowd is now silent.**

**The other teens are looking too. Tuffnut gets up, holding his red nose, while Ruffnut, Snotlout and Fishlegs look on in amazement. "Wow," the dumber twin commented. "He's better than you ever were."**

**Bad move. The Scowling Astrid returns once again!**

Astrid knocked Tuffnut out for making the 'movie' mention her scowls again.

**As soon as the dragon is back in his cage, Hiccup places a foot against the little door and turns to the others with a smile.**

Astrid smiled slightly at seeing how Hiccup managed to do so well in Dragon Training without using any kind of violence.

**An axe flies through the air and embeds itself into a tree.**

Hiccup, who was looking from under Toothless's wing, winced and retreated a bit further. He wasn't the only one who flinched. It really looked like Astrid had wanted to hit the poor boy.

"Mmh, so soon it'll show us arriving here, I guess?" Astrid mumbled, remembering that that was the moment she'd been kidnapped.

"No. You are to be shown the future as well, and the end of the war, as I said," explained Khor. "As such, you will be shown what _would've_ happened, hadn't you been kidnapped."

"Cool, now we get to watch the future!" cheered Ruffnut.

"Ohhh, we'll be the very firsts ever to see the future!" Fishlegs squealed excitedly.

"I can't wait to see how awesome I am in the future!" grinned Snotlout. To be honest with him, the stunt he pulled on the Red Death's head was pretty awesome. But one shouldn't be distracted by pretty girls' compliments when that one is on a gigantic, ferocious dragon, hundreds of feet up in the air.

**Astrid is shown throwing her axe at poor, innocent trees several times. At the fourth tree shot, she grabs her axe, rolls on the ground, readies her axe… and stops, surprised and taken aback by the sight in front of her.**

**Hiccup, who was standing a few feet away, winces visibly as Astrid remains in throwing position and scurries away in the woods.**

"I'll be honest, I would've run too," admitted Mulch.

"Run where?" As usual no one really listened to Bucket.

"Yeah, the lass can be scary when she wants to," nodded Gobber, scratching his moustache once again. With how dirty it was, he was probably slaughtering lots of lice and ticks.

**Hiccup disappears behind a large boulder. Astrid cautiously follows him, curious. She climbs on the rock to peek around, but the boy's gone and the woods are still, as if no one had passed.**

"Look down," came Spitelout's voice. "The boy's probably right behind that rock."

Astrid rubbed her forehead. That was pretty obvious. Why hadn't… well, why _won't_ she think of that?

**Not even bothering to look down, amateur. She slams a fist on the stone in frustration. If she's an incompetent hunter she shouldn't take it out of poor, innocent rocks…**

And once again Astrid was howling in fury. "Why is it singling me out?!" She all but screeched at the wall, being held back by her parents from trying to once again axe it to pieces.

Khor wisely thought not to mention he was the narrator. As immortal as he was, he didn't want to test the limits of his invulnerability with an angry Astrid. Skinny dipping into a lake of magma would be safer.

**Hiccup is shown tying the latest version of the saddle to his dragon while the latter gorges himself on fish.**

**It's a highly complex mechanism no one but Hiccup knows how it works. It's tied around the dragon's forelegs and with stirrups for the saddle. Toothless doesn't even seem to notice he's being equipped something like that.**

"That's it, I'm quitting!" Gobber shouted and stood up.

"What, no!" Stoick exclaimed as well. "Gobber, you're our best-"

"Best? Have you seen that thing? I couldn't even tell you what it does, much less invent it or build it! It's time I get my much-deserved retirement! I'm old and it's clear no one needs me any longer! Besides, without the dragons to fight we won't even need weapons!" Gobber actually looked a bit sad at that. "But that's fine! I mean, better be jobless than be raided!"

"Gobber, you're the best blacksmith I know." Everyone turned to Hiccup, who had just reappeared from under Toothless's wing. "You can't just quit! You'll find other things to build! I can show you how I create stuff and you can help me make them less… ehm-ehm… well, safer!"

"Besides, three hands and a hook are better than just two hands, right?" he finished with a smile that brought a similar smile to his mentor's face.

"Aye! Fine, I'm staying, but Hiccup's no more my apprentice, he's a fully-fledged smith now!" he exclaimed cheerfully. Hiccup was shocked for a second, but soon his smile returned in full force.

Unfortunately Ruffnut just had to ruin it.

"So… dragon-sized, huh?" she purred as she invaded his personal space.

"Stay away from him, you _krrgr_!" And again Toothless used that untranslated word. Ruffnut glared at him, giving Hiccup enough time to crawl back in the dragon's wings.

**Hiccup is shown riding on Toothless, hair blown back by the wind and clouds in the background.**

"Are we flying for real?!" Hiccup exclaimed, elated. Toothless perked up.

**The view enlarges, showing they are tied to a stump of a tree.**

The two slumped a little. "Oh well, at least it's working," mumbled Hiccup, not knowing he shouldn't tempt fate.

"YES!" Everyone jumped three feet up in the air at Khor's sudden outburst. The man stood up with a crazed look on his face. "YES! I HAVE FINALLY SEEN RACE TO THE EDGE!"

"Uh… Khor?" Stoick hesitantly called out.

"Granted, I only saw seasons three and four but still I saw them!" The man ignored everyone and everything else, the insanity never leaving his eyes. "ALL THOSE HICCSTRID MOMENTS! ALL THOSE HICCSTRID GOODNESS IS FINALLY IN MY HANDS! NOW! I KNOW! HOW! MY SHIP! HAS SAILED!"

"Uhhh… Khor?" Hiccup tried it this time.

"And now I can show them so much!" Depression took over. "But it's way too long! I'll never have enough time!" His grin was back. "But I don't have to show all of it, do I? I can show them… maybe a snippet of the Buffalord Soldier… I mean, that sentence is more or less one of the smoothest one-liners I've ever seen… and obviously the end of Blindsided… Now that I think of it, an introduction to movie two would surely drop their jaws… 'specially Astrid's… And I'd never miss on showing them movie three's grand finale! Though I'll have to cut out a certain someone, I don't wanna explain too much. BUT STILL! I HAVE DONE IT! I'VE GOT MY HANDS ON RACE TO THE EDGE! MWAHAHAHAHAH!"

He then devolved into crazed, maniacal laughter no one wanted to touch with a ten-feet pole.

**Hiccup, for lack of a better term, changes gears and Toothless lands. The two exchange a glance, happy that at least something was going well.**

**Hiccup notes down the pedal position before he and Toothless take up again. This time, however, the wind is too strong and snaps the rope, sending them tumbling into the woods. Ouch, that must've hurt.**

"Noting down the positions?" Gobber was seriously impressed. "Ha! Show 'em how it's done, Hiccup!"

Stoick's smile was no less proud, but a bit sadder at seeing Gobber act so… well, fatherly. Of course, Gobber wouldn't be a good father in many ways, but at least he could make Hiccup understand he did care for him. Stoick himself… well, the results spoke for themselves.

Hiccup smiled. He still hadn't tried that particular saddle, but it seemed like it worked! Despite being a tad irritated by having been kidnapped _just_ as he finally got the saddle right. Well, mostly. They still crashed.

Astrid would never admit it, but she was observing him _very_ carefully. After all, the best way to get to know someone was to see them in their natural environment, and it seemed clear to everyone that Hiccup's was on that dragon, trying to reach the sky.

She'd never admit, either, that she was actually thinking on whether her crush on Hiccup was just that, or if it was something more. After all, Astrid wasn't one to not think things through… most of the time.

**The view chases after them through several trees before landing on the pair, who crashed on the ground. As Toothless rights himself Hiccup, who was on the ground, is pulled up by the harness's rope, showing why trying yourself to a dragon isn't always a good idea.**

People snickered at the boy's predicament. Hiccup shrugged. It was either always falling off or always staying on. Though he wondered why he couldn't just unhook the rope.

**He tries to pull the rope off the hook, but he sees that the fall has bent it. "Oh great…"**

Oh, so that was why. "I guess that's just the umpteenth failure bud," he shrugged, not particularly discouraged by it. "Add it to the pile. I guess next time'll be better."

"You just crashed for the 'umptinf' time or whatever, and you don't care?" Snotlout commented, incredulous. "What makes you say next time will be any better?"

"Well, always doing things right may be nice, but eventually it doesn't teach you anything," replied the boy. "Have you ever heard of the saying, you learn from your mistakes? It's because of those mistakes you can learn. You push yourself to fix them and you better yourself. That's what I've been doing with Toothless's saddle. It didn't matter if one prototype didn't work. Sure, it was frustrating, but crash tests are crash tests. As long as I can figure out how to fix it, it's a good thing! Better fail now than later, when we are way up in the air or something."

**A blond Viking, in the middle of the night, is patrolling the village with a torch. Seeing Hiccup leaning against a house, he nods in greetings. "Hiccup."**

"I guess he managed to fix the saddle," sighed Tuffnut. "Pity…"

"Yeah! I wanted to see him get in trouble for that!" Ruffnut added as well.

"Guys… you do know that Hiccup would be executed for treason if he were to be caught with a dragon, right?" Fishlegs winced even as he spoke. He'd never really disliked Hiccup, so he'd rather not imagine him executed.

"Of course we do!" exclaimed Ruffnut.

"But what fun there is without a little risk?" her twin completed.

Seeing that Fishlegs was about to speak again, Snotlout snorted. "It's the twins, Fishlegs. They're idiots."

**Hiccup smiles back nervously, raising a hand in greeting. As soon as the guard has passed, with the torch's light still visible, Toothless comes out from behind the house and tries to follow the light, only for Hiccup to pull him the other way.**

Everyone's jaw dropped, and that particular Viking hurried to hide in shame.

Then the dragons burst into laughters while Stoick looked ready to explode. "What kind of idiot doesn't see a dragon when it's ten feet away from them!?"

Hiccup held in a snort. Well, what kind of fool didn't see when his own son was trying to tell him something important?

"S-Sorry Chief," mumbled the Viking, Thirdborn. Who was an only son, but Vikings had never been great mathematicians anyway. "I-It's just that… Hiccup was there, so I guess I didn't think to check…"

"Isn't 'Hiccup was there' even _more_ reason to check?" inquired Blazingfire, a Nightmare. Toothless looked at him with a clear warning in his eyes. "I- I mean…"

"Well, he's not wrong, considering I was literally going against everything Viking stand for," shrugged Hiccup.

Astrid, because yes Astrid is after Hiccup the one who thinks the most in the entire village, was brought back to her earlier musings about why Hiccup had 'betrayed', she used her word for lack of a better term even if the crime had been forgiven by now, even knowing that he had to give up on ever becoming a Viking for it.

And for what? A dragon? As selfless as Hiccup could be she doubted that was the full reason. Deep down everyone was a bit selfish.

She recalled bits and pieces of what Hiccup had said thorough their stay there. There was always one thing that stayed the same – the way he rejected the Viking method because it wasn't who he was.

_It wasn't who he was!_

How could she had missed that?!

She wanted to smack herself. _That_ was why Hiccup had done all of that. Because as opposite to everyone on Berk, he wasn't following the Viking way – he was following his own way. He was being himself, something she could honestly say she'd never seen anyone do, not at the same extent as Hiccup did. He'd freed the dragon because _he_ was no killer, not just out of pity. It was also out of disgust at himself, for doing something he hadn't really wanted to do, but had been pressured by the village into doing.

Her triumph at figuring that out was short lived.

Because while Hiccup had found a way to be happy being himself, looking back at her own life, she could clearly see she had done a very poor job at being happy, or even just at being herself.

She glanced at the other Vikings. All of them had. If they really ended up in peace with the dragons, everyone would need to find themselves again. But at least they would all be free to be themselves.

She glanced back at Hiccup, who was still semi-hiding under Toothless's wing, something no Viking would ever do, dragon or no dragon. A small smile came to her face. He would save them all in more than one way.

**An aerial shot shows them heading to the forge, the guard not even twenty feet away.**

**Hiccup leads the way, looking around for anyone up late. Toothless comes after him and notices a bucket. Maybe thinking that it would be fun to stick his head into it, he tries but finds out that no, it's not fun. He shakes his head and tosses it away.**

Dragons and Vikings snorted at the sight. "You deserve that, bud," Hiccup shrugged when Toothless shot him a betrayed look. "What? You're the dragon in the middle of a dragon-killing Viking village, who won't even try to be silent."

"Ugh, fine," Toothless rolled his eyes.

**The noise of the bucket impacting again some metal utensil alerts Astrid, who is for some reason walking outside. There's not enough time to see if she's scowling or not.**

Astrid held her axe with a growl. If that narrator wanted her scowls, he was managing just fine.

**As soon as she hears the noise, she turns around and heads toward the forge.**

"Uh-oh…" winced Hiccup, seeing the girl head for the building. "That's not gonna be pretty."

"Nope, not at all," Astrid agreed. As much as she could _now_ approve of his actions, her future self didn't know the full story. Which meant she would probably try to extort the truth from him, or axe him for it. Whichever she felt in the mood for. By her estimations… probably the second. But maybe she'd give the first a try.

**Hiccup is straining to fix the saddle's hooks. Suddenly he hears Astrid's voice from outside. "Hiccup? Are you in there?"**

**The view zooms in on his panicked expression. Toothless warbles interrogatively.**

"How did you get out of there alive?" Fishlegs asked fearfully. "Or, well, how _will_ you get out of there alive, since this is the future?"

"Meh, Hiccup basically lives in the forge, as long as Astrid doesn't see the dragon, it's not like she can fault him for being there," shrugged Snotlout, though he too was interested to see how it would unfold. "He's probably gonna stammer his way through Astrid's questions before making an excuse and hitting the road."

"That's… probably what's gonna happen," the auburn-haired boy admitted with a sigh. "Though it really depends on whether I managed to fix the saddle. It might be hard to keep Toothless out of view otherwise."

**Hiccup jumps out of the stall's hatch before quickly closing it behind him. Astrid is completely focused on him – so much she doesn't see the twenty feet long dragon with bright green eyes looking at her in the split second it takes for him to close the hatch.**

Astrid snarled, but as long as her facial expressions were left well alone, she could make it get away with that.

Hiccup groaned. "Great, direct confrontation. Just about the worst thing I could do."

"It was nice knowing you, cuz'," grinned Snotlout.

**"Astrid! Hey… Hi, Astrid. Hi, Astrid… Hi. Astrid." As Hiccup does his best to ruin any facade of normality in front of the girl Toothless, who's obviously not happy about having had the hatch closed in his face nor about who Hiccup is talking with, shakes his head with a frown before he sees a sheep in the field.**

**The sheep, having noticed the big and menacing dragon in the forge, stops bleating.**

Stoick and the other Vikings sent glares toward Toothless, who blew them off with a small puff of smoke. "Cool your fire, I'll remember not to eat it. I doubt Hiccup's gonna let me do that anyway."

**"I normally don't care what people do but you're acting weird," Astrid states sternly, pointing at the boy who, poor poor him, gets pulled back by the rope, still attached to the saddle, which is on Toothless, who is trying to get to the sheep. Astrid, a bit taken aback, amends her statement. "Well, weirder."**

"Weirder! That is the perfect word to describe my life as of recently," Hiccup commented, trying to mask the tension.

"Don't you mean… _weirderer?_" Tuffnut offered with a grin before his sister smacked him on the head.

"Idiot! The word is _weirderest_!" she wrongly corrected him, which led to Tuffnut trying to strangle her in revenge, which led to another Thorston fight.

**Hiccup, that poor guy, gets pulled again, and then again through the hatch and out of view. Astrid, startled, walks closer to investigate and opens the hatch's doors wide…**

Everyone held their breath.

…**only to find the forge completely empty of dragons or Hiccups.**

They released their breath, before a Nightmare, Magmascale, spoke up. "Hey, why are we worried anyway? Khor said we would see the end of the war and it's clear the hatchling with horrible luck is the hero of the war!"

Everyone looked at Khor, who looked back at them with the crazy light still in his eyes. "Race to the Edge," was all he said, grinning.

"Yeah, I'm not trusting his words much right now," Hiccup replied warily, keeping an eye on the brown-haired madman.

**As she looks inside, Hiccup on Toothless darts past behind her. She is still in sight, looking at the forge, as they cross the bridge and exit the village.**

"Whew, that was a close one," Fishlegs sighed in relief.

"Yeah, but that will probably just make her… me… even more suspicious," noted Astrid, and she was right. Who wouldn't be suspicious after an encounter like that? "Which means I'm going to look for answers even more, and I'm gonna…"

"Hate me even more?" Hiccup offered sarcastically, before muttering to himself, "Didn't think it was possible…"

"Well, yeah." Astrid winced at how bluntly he'd put it.

"Great. Can't wait."

"Hiccup, remember what I said about sarcasm," grumbled Toothless.

**The scene changes to a boat returning to the harbour with a hole burned in its side, full of downcast Vikings. They really look like they've had the butts handed to them bad. Well, not a surprise given where they went. And Stoick thought 'one more search' would do any good! He's as conceited as he is 'vast'.**

Stoick scowled so hard at the wall people thought it would start to crack. "It seems like it's my turn to be made fun of," he growled out between gritted teeth.

"Better him than me," Astrid mumbled under her breath.

"Oh, calm your jets, Stoick, it's not like you weren't expecting it!" Gobber commented cheerfully, oblivious as ever.

**The sail with the impaled dragon is half torn and has a hole in the other half. Yep, butts thoroughly kicked, and cooked as well.**

**A Viking helps the brave (read: stupidly stubborn) warriors on the docks. Even the proud Stoick, with something carried under his arm, allows himself to be pulled up.**

Stoick continued to growl like a dragon, to the point where people started to wonder if he was about to sprout scales and start to spew fire everywhere.

_'Now that'd be something even weirder than my life,'_ thought Hiccup.

"Ah, don't worry, Stoick," Spitelout laughed. "I'm sure it's just a moment."

"Or maybe it's because he's been missing for most of this 'movie' so now he gets all the ridicule he hasn't gotten earlier," guessed Snotlout.

Or maybe it was just because the narrator felt like being offensive to someone and Stoick just so happened to be there.

Or the narrator was always in the mood for being offensive.

Whatever.

Given the state he was in, Khor surely wouldn't answer…

**"Well… I trust you found the Nest at least," commented Gobber as he approaches the scowling chief. Okay, forget Astrid, she's an adorable angel compared to Stoick. The man has two expressions – scowl, and asleep.**

Astrid slapped a hand to her mouth to hide the grin underneath. It wasn't her fault! The narrator was clearly using flattery to turn her against her chief and make her laugh at him!

Others weren't as thoughtful as her, especially the dragons. They found it _hilarious_. Hiccup too.

Stoick roared and threw himself at the screen. "If Gothi could make you take your words back then I will too!" he bellowed, and if they had been in an anime, he would've had an angry face complete with flames behind his eyes, shark fangs and demonic horns.

A raspberry sound was heard from the wall.

Another fit of anger later, which dealt exactly zero damage to the screen, Gobber and Hiccup managed to calm Stoick down enough to continue with the movie.

**"Not even close," Stoick states angrily, walking past him. Rude much.**

"But if even now you don't even get close, why continue at all?" asked Snotlout. "Wouldn't it be easier to remain here, not lose boats, and fight them off?"

"No. If the raids continue, that strategy cannot work for long," replied the huge man. "Though I guess searching for the Nest isn't working either…"

The dragons exchanged a glance. "Trust me, you don't _want_ to reach the Nest," Meatlug stated before she shuddered. "You wouldn't survive…"

"She's right, you would all die. Not only because there are thousands of dragons there, but also because of the Blood Tyrant," Stormfly agreed, backing her up.

It was the Vikings' turn to exchange looks. The dragons had mentioned the Blood Tyrant before. Was it seriously that strong?

**"Ah…" Saddened, Gobber walks after him. "Excellent."**

**"I hope you had a little more success than me," grumbles Stoick as the two walk away from the docks.**

**"Well, if by success you mean your parenting troubles are over, then…" Gobber grabs the bag Stoick is carrying and smiles at him. "Yes."**

"What's that supposed to mean?" Hiccup glared at Gobber, who chuckled nervously. He wasn't supposed to hear that. "Also, parenting troubles? And here I thought you were on my side, Gobber."

Hidden under the sarcasm, it was clear that Hiccup was hurt by the knowledge that even his closest -human- friend, who had basically been his father figure, considered him to be a thorn in his father's side, like the rest of the village.

"Hiccup, I-" Gobber stopped when the boy didn't turn to him. He knew he'd be forgiven, soon too, but having hurt his surrogate son because of a careless remark hurt him too. "I'm sorry…"

Hiccup continued to look at the wall, but Astrid, who was sitting basically right beside him, could clearly see the way he was clenching his hands.

_'Just how many times did he feel like that?'_ she wondered. Probably too many. Way too many.

**"Congratulations Stoick!" cries a woman as she walks up to the Chief. A group of Vikings is coming behind her to greet the returned warriors. "Everyone is ****_so_****relieved!"**

Astrid frowned. Hiccup wasn't _that_ bad.

**"End of the old and in with the new, right?" another cheerful Viking states as he walks by the still stunned Chief.**

Fishlegs frowned as well. There was nothing wrong with the old Hiccup.

**"No one will miss that old nuisance," a brown-haired Viking jokes as he jogs by with a bucket.**

Hiccup looked away. No one would miss him, huh? Not like he hadn't thought of just jumping on Trader Johann's ship and just leave Berk before. He seriously didn't even know why he'd bothered. Now, it was all worth it, but back then, he didn't know just what kept him there. Maybe his dad, as stupid and hopeless as that sounded?

**"The village is throwing a party to celebrate!" a final Viking, this one too with brown hair and a bucket full of stuff, informs the Chief as he runs by.**

Heavy breathing could be heard in the strained silence that followed. Hiccup looked to the side, only to see a slit-eyed Toothless beginning to growl. He looked beside himself in fury.

"YOU MOTHERFUCKERS!" he exploded, standing up and glaring at the Vikings so fiercely some of them actually fainted. Hiccup was shocked by Toothless's vulgarity. "How dare you?! HOW DARE YOU!? Speak so cruelly about a child! Do you have no dignity?! Do you have no honour?! DO YOU HAVE NO HEART?!"

He then turned toward Stoick, and if possible his gaze burned even more. "And you. He's your son. He should be the most important thing in the entire world for you. And yet there you stood, watching people belittle him every day of your stupid, useless parenthood, doing _nothing_ to stop them! AND HERE YOU ARE, WATCHING THEM SAY THEY ARE GLAD HE'S GONE, AND YOU'RE NOT EVEN ANNOYED BY IT!"

"I-"

"You're not a father. You're not _his_ father," Toothless growled, still so furious he could barely see through the redness that filled his vision. "You might say you've accepted _me_ as your s-… As Hiccup's friend. But you seem to be forgetting something. _I_ haven't accepted _you_. And with how you're acting, I don't see myself accepting you anytime soon."

He glared at all of the village for one last message, shouted at the tops of his lungs. "YOU SHOULD ALL BE ASHAMED OF YOURSELVES!"

As he felt the fury subside ever so slightly, he looked back at Hiccup, and promptly recoiled at the sad look on his face. Because that look wasn't aimed at how the people had treated him… It was aimed at him.

For how he'd just alienated him to his father even more.

"I'm sorry," he whimpered, settling down beside the boy. "They just made me so angry… I didn't mean to…"

"I know, bud," the boy nodded, stroking his scales. "Don't worry. I know."

Everyone else was silent.

**Stoick turns to Gobber in wide-eyed disbelief. "He's gone?"**

No one missed the involuntary growl from the Night Fury.

**"Ehm… Yeah… most afternoons, but who can blame him, I mean, the life of a celebrity is very rough," replies the smith, continuing to walk. "He can barely walk through the village without being swarmed by his new fans."**

**Stoick puts a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "Hiccup?"**

"Who else?"

**Gobber turns with a smile. "Who would've thought it? He has this ****_way_****with the beasts."**

"Never been righter." This time, Hiccup's smirk was sincere, and almost proud.

"Thought we're not beasts, thanks very little," snorted Stormfly.

**Stoick seems to smile underneath all that hair he calls a beard.**

And they were back to mocking him. Stoick took the insult in stride. Honestly, after being told off by the Night Fury, he almost felt like he deserved it. Not that he agreed with the dragon when he'd basically revert-disowned him, but he agreed that he should've done something much earlier, and not just when his son proved himself to be a great Viking.

**The view changes to the clouds. Hiccup and Toothless rise from the bottom of the screen, with the former's hair being swept back by the wind.**

"That's actually a good look on you," noted Tuffnut. "Straight hair falling straight down works for me, but you are more of a 'wild framing around the face' kind of guy."

Astrid had to give it to Tuffnut, he had a point.

"Yeah, like _my_ hair," Snotlout bragged immediately, caressing his black hair.

"No, you look ridiculous no matter the hairstyle," cackled Ruffnut, with Tuffnut soon joining in, making the Jorgenson boy growl in annoyance.

**Toothless's eyes are narrowed in determination. Hiccup looks around at his surroundings.**

**The scene changes to another sky shot with clouds. Hiccup and Toothless appear from behind one of the clouds. In the background, the mountain is seen.**

Everyone just about had a heart attack. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING SO FAR UP?!" Stoick shouted so hard the closest to him actually felt their ears ring.

"Are you crazy?!" Astrid exclaimed, shocked he'd do something so reckless.

"Night Fury! You let the hatchling do something so dangerous just so you could fly again?!" Meatlug exclaimed. She was usually very mellow, but when kids were in danger, she became way scarier than any Fury.

"Hey, we're the same age, he's just smaller!" protested Toothless.

"NOT AN EXCUSE!"

**"Okay there bud," states Hiccup, patting the dragon's neck as they sway a bit in the wind. "We're gonna take this nice and slow."**

"Night Furies don't do nice and slow," grumbled the dragon, before receiving a tail bludgeon from Meatlug. "Sorry! Nice and slow is fine!"

"I love that dragon," grinned Hiccup, receiving a sour look from his own flying reptile.

**Hiccup checks his instruction sheet, on which six positions are shown. "Here we go, here we go. Position three…" He spots his mistake and corrects himself, eyes wide at the close call. "No, four!" He moves the pedal and, behind him, the tailfin snaps open.**

"That. Is. Amazing!" exclaimed Gobber, gobsmacked by the mechanism behind the tailfin. "I mean, its base concept isn't all that complicated – a rope that regulates it depending on how much the pedal is pushed down-" Most Vikings and all dragons were already lost. "But the way he built it _into_ the saddle, and all of that adapted to a _dragon_ is incredible! I have half a thought of asking to be _his_ apprentice!"

"Gobber, you taught me everything I know, you can't be my apprentice!" replied Hiccup, though he was really flattered.

"Maybe, but with how your brain works, I would _still_ have lots to learn." Gobber was being sincere there. True, in terms of experience Hiccup was below him, as he was in terms of skill with the basic blacksmithing, like forging weapons. But the heights he could bring smithing to were something Gobber would probably never be able to reach without his help.

**Toothless glances behind him before shaking his head with a snort.**

"I go through all those prototypes for you and you just snort because you can't go all neckbreaking fast as soon as we get in the air?" Hiccup scoffed. "Draco non grato."

**The two fly through the air, with Toothless's wings wide open. Hiccup tugs a bit on the instruction sheet to see if it holds. So it would seem. He then glances back at the tail, and smiles as he and Toothless complete the turn they were making.**

"So far so good," mumbled Hiccup. "Maybe that's our winning version?"

"Let's hope so…" grumbled Toothless, still cowering a bit under Meatlug's motherly but wrathful eye.

**Hiccup keeps looking back at the tail to see how it reacts to the different turns and speeds. "Alright, it's go time, it's go time."**

"Finally go time," Toothless whispered as to not be heard by Meatlug.

Hiccup grinned. "Adrenaline junkie."

"Totally, any day of the week."

**The two of them dive through the clouds and towards a group of sea stacks.**

"Hiccup, don't-" Meatlug can't finish.

"Oh, give it a rest, will you?" sighed Stormfly. "Flying is no fun if you stick to slowly flying in open spaces."

Toothless grinned. He found his other half. Not literally, of course, he had both halves all the time, except for his tail fins.

**"Come on buddy!" Toothless's left wing touches the water as they fly just above it, heading for a huge arc of stone coming out of the water. "Come on buddy!"**

**The dragon looks up, determination faltering for a split second before it came back tenfold. Hiccup, looking far more nervous, glances up as if expecting the sea stack to collapse on him.**

Toothless grinned again, this time at his human brother's expression.

**A bunch of birds are scared off by the passage of the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. The duo makes it past the stone arc.**

**Smiling victoriously, Hiccup looks back. "Yes it worked!" he cheers.**

A lot of people sighed in relief.

**Toothless speeds up.**

**However, they cannot change direction fast enough to dodge another sea stack, resulting in them crashing against it.**

"Ouch. Sorry…" Hiccup, liked everyone else, winced, and shot an apologetic look at his dragon, who just shrugged.

**"Sorry…" They then fly into another stack. "That's my fault."**

**Yeah, no kidding. Whose fault could it be? Of the dragon who's flown all his life, or of the boy who's been flying for ten minutes?**

Hiccup blew a raspberry at the screen.

**The dragon apparently agrees and slaps him with one of his ear frills, a frown on his snout. "Agh!" Responding with a glare of his own, Hiccup shook his head in exasperation. "Yeah, yeah, I'm on it."**

Astrid smiled. Hiccup didn't look half bad with wind-swept hair and a glare.

Others chuckled at the two's interaction. Both exasperated but neither truly at each other.

**"Position four, eh, three." Hiccup adjust the pedal and the dragon rises up in the air, away from the sea stacks.**

**Toothless lets out a victorious roar as he can finally get back in the air. Hiccup, looking back at how far down the ground is, instead of being nervous as nature commands, is ecstatic just as much as the dragon.**

**"Yeah! Go baby!" The dragon's his same age and male, 'baby' might not be the best way to call him.**

Once again people smirked. It seemed like the narrator decided to go back to teasing Hiccup.

The boy, on his part, didn't care about the nab. He was just too happy to see that he finally got Toothless to fly again. And he was flying with him too!

**"Oh, this is amazing! The wind in my-" As they rise, the wind tears the instruction sheet off its holder. "-CHEAT SHEET! STOP!" he screams, obviously trying to talk to the sheet.**

**However, the dragon listens, and just as he grabs the paper, Toothless stops. The momentum carries Hiccup up further, unhooking him from the saddle.**

Everyone, Hiccup and Toothless included, held their breath, the excitement long forgotten. That sheet was too important to lose, and now he was without the harness's ropes to secure him to the saddle. He could-

**And then his momentum ends, bringing him back down. "NOOO!" he screams as he plummets back down, thousands of feet up in the air.**

**Toothless roars, trying to catch him, but he's falling too, and without Hiccup to manoeuvre his tail, he can't fly. They both start to fall back down towards the ground.**

A shocked, terrified silence filled the hall.

Then…

_**And it ends here! I'm cruel, I know, I know. But honestly, that's better left for the next chapter.**_

_**Anyway! It's been a while, huh? More than a month… in my defence, I had to update my other stories as well. Also, we just arrived to the halfway point of the movie!**_

_**And yes I got RTTE so I can now see it. I got Seasons 3 and 4 for the time being. So yeah, I've seen Blindsided, and Buffalord Soldier. And I've fangirled (fanboyed?) all the way. I love Hiccstrid. I can't wait for Seasons 5 and 6. Then, eventually, I'll watch the 1 and 2. I know the plot already anyway. Also… my parents kind of got it mixed up so they'll be the last ones arriving, given how they are my birthday gift. Hehehe…**_

_**So!**_

_**Astrid is NOT going to get together with Hiccup in this story. I'm setting the romance. It's there. But, like it happened in the show proper, even if the chemistry is there, they need time before they can get together. Sure, they would need LESS time in this case, but time nonetheless. I just love how they did it in RTTE. It was just so perfect, so… them. It fit them so well.**_

_**As for what Tuffnut said, don't mind him. He says things even I have not control over. Besides, he's an idiot.**_

_**Also, ouch ouch ouch, Toothless is getting progressively more and more furious at the Vikings. Whoops, and Stoick disowning Hiccup is yet to be shown. Uh-uh… not the best thing to let Toothless see.**_

_**See you all guys!**_

_**Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh**_


	9. Worst Viking, Best Person

**_This is here only because I felt bad for the cliffhanger, otherwise it would've waited until after Rose. So don't expect an update soon. This being said, enjoy! Explain-y AN at the end._**

_[last time]_

_Everyone, Hiccup and Toothless included, held their breath, the excitement long forgotten. That sheet was too important to lose, and now he was without the harness's ropes to secure him to the saddle. He could-_

_**And then his momentum ends, bringing him back down. "NOOO!" he screams as he plummets back down, thousands of feet up in the air.**_

_**Toothless roars, trying to catch him, but he's falling too, and without Hiccup to manoeuvre his tail, he can't fly. They both start to fall back down towards the ground.**_

_A shocked, terrified silence filled the hall._

_Then…_

_[present time]_

"HICCUP!/NIGHT FURY!/HATCHLING!/Toothless!" were the three shouts that echoed in the room, basically deafening everyone present. Funny how the last was only called by Hiccup himself, the first by all the Vikings plus Toothless, the second and the third by the dragons only.

Everyone was hyperventilating. That fall would be fatal to anyone, be it human or dragon or animal or _anything_.

Gobber had stopped breathing. Hiccup was like a son to him. He wanted to turn away, but for some reason, he found out he just couldn't.

The teens, even the twins, were silent. Snotlout had the most surprising reaction – though maybe it wasn't all that surprisingly once one thought about it. He was clenching his hands tightly and looked terrified for his cousin's life. He bullied and belittled him, but he rarely hurt him physically, and he never actually wished him ill. It was mostly to boost his own ego and to heal the wounds his father's jabs at him left. He would _never_ want Hiccup dead, and he would _always_ do anything he could to save him, but right now he was powerless, completely powerless.

The dragons were worried, because in the past hour or two they'd gotten a bit attached to both Hiccup and Toothless, but not enough to warrant any actual terror. Aside from Stormfly and Meatlug, who were both worried about Toothless, mostly, and Hiccup, most dragons were just worried because they didn't like people dying.

Astrid reached out to grab Hiccup's hand. There was nothing romantic about the gesture, it was both to ensure he was still there, and to gain and offer a bit of comfort. She could swear her heart skipped pulses more than it beat them, it was just _that_ erratic at the moment, and not in a good way.

Likewise, Hiccup didn't think anything of the hand holding outside of its strictly comforting goal, calming down both of them. He kept a hand on Toothless's snout, who just sighed at that. However, he was far more used to being in life danger given his actions during the raids. At least, if he died, he died with his brother, and he died in the air instead of hunted down like a cornered animal.

Stoick had literally crushed his axe, handle, head and all, because he needed something to grab onto or his hands wouldn't stop shaking. He couldn't think straight. He simply couldn't. That was his son over there, over _then_, falling towards his death, and he couldn't do anything about it.

It was said that when one was about to die, their life flashed before their eyes.

For him, it was similar. His son was about to die, and his mind recalled every single moment he'd spent with him. Many of them were happy. Many of them weren't, especially the most recent ones.

There weren't enough. Not even close.

Even had he spent every single waking moment with him, it wouldn't have been enough to accept his son's death.

A death he had indirectly caused. Hiccup was falling because he'd been trying to get the dragon back in the air. He was with that dragon because _he_ had pushed him so hard until he finally did shoot down a dragon. Had he just been happy with who Hiccup was, none of it would've happened.

He remembered when he'd gotten angry because a five-year-old Hiccup had ditched fishing in favour of searching the woods for trolls. He remembered how, when he'd finally found him, he had gotten himself and the rest of the teens -who had immediately agreed to help him hunt since they all believed in trolls at the time, damn Gobber and his stories- covered head to toe in mud and leaves and sticks. They were all laughing while Snotlout and Tuffnut pretended to be trolls talking about the trade of stolen socks. He'd ruined the fun and lectured Hiccup right then and there before sending everyone home.

Why had he done that? Why couldn't he have just commented on how trolls used to live closer to the village since that was where the socks where, and then gone back home, content with the knowledge the kids were having fun not too far from him?

He then remembered trying to teach him how to braid hair and beard when he was six, telling him he would need it in the future. Unless he wanted to do like Spitelout and just keep his hair short. Hiccup never managed to do it right. He would always do the hair braid good enough, but the beard was just too hard for him. He couldn't do more than one braid in it without messing it up. Also, he was quickly bored by trying over and over. He remembered seeing him approach Astrid, who at the time was still depressed because of her uncle Finn's dishonour and demise. She had told him she'd become the greatest warrior ever and avenge her uncle. He'd offered to braid her hair so that she would look like a warrior. She'd never changed her hairstyle in almost ten years. The following day, Stoick had somewhat reprimanded him for braiding someone's hair but not having enough focus to braid his beard.

Why? Looking back, it was so unimportant. He should've praised him for both his bravery in approaching the still emotionally-unstable Hofferson and for his goodness of heart. What would it had costed him to smile at him and tell him he'd done a good job?

Now he was about to see his son's death, and all those past regrets came back to haunt him a hundredfold.

Why had he always wanted a perfect son and never settled for anything?

Even worse, why, _how_ in the world, had he ever dared to think his son wasn't perfect already, with all his flaws and all his merits? How had he dared to demand his son to be anything but who he already was?

**Toothless roars, twisting in the air to try and spot his rider, who is at the moment panicking. "Oh gosh. Oh gods. Oh no!"**

**He manages to turn toward his dragon, but as the latter spreads his wing a bit to stabilize, Hiccup fails to grab onto a wing and falls down a bit further. "Alright, you gotta- you gotta – angle yourself."**

**Toothless starts to spin to find new angles as Hiccup wished, but it's not working.**

**"Okay, no no no. Come back down further, come back down-uagh!" Spinning, Toothless accidentally smacks him in the face, cutting him off. The boy tumbles further away in the air, just as the mountain's top appears in the view.**

Hiccup winced. That might leave a mark, depending on how strong it was. He just hoped it'd get the chance to leave a mark, because that'd meant he would've survived, and Toothless alongside him.

However, they were falling fast, maybe too fast. Unless he managed to change direction and fly back up. He didn't like his chances.

**Hiccup puts the pedal positioning sheet in his mouth and gets closer to Toothless, now that the dragon's under him and no longer spinning madly.**

**The boy manages to grab the saddle after a few attempts, pulling himself back on and securing himself once again.**

Everyone looked at Hiccup in shock, and he returned their stares in confusion. Now that Hiccup was back on the dragon, the tension in the room had lightened a bit, just a bit. "What?"

"Boyo, do you realize what you've just done?" Spitelout asked, incredulous.

"Got back on the saddle?" Hiccup replied with a shrug. "That was kinda needed unless I wanted to find out if a Viking head really was harder than a rock…"

"No, that ain't it, boyo," his uncle shook his head, still having a hard time believing it. "Do you realize how much strength you need to do that? You were fighting the pull of the wind falling from that high!"

Hiccup shrugged. He'd fallen a lot of times before, it wouldn't be the first time he had to fight against the wind, and he'd found it wasn't as strong as he thought it was. "It wouldn't be all that hard, actually. It's not like I stopped my fall or anything, I just moved around a bit."

"Grabbing the saddle and moving closer is one thing, but you put yourself in a seated position, that's not easy when your entire body is falling at breaknecking speed," Gobber added as well.

"The hatchling's right, moving around in mid-air isn't a very hard task if you know how to do it," Stormfly came to his rescue, nodding her head. "What I'm surprised by is the fact that he's surprisingly calm for the situation. Most wouldn't have been able to calm down enough to think of that before they got too low."

Toothless allowed himself a small smile. "Well, Hiccup's not your ordinary dragon."

"He's not a dragon."

"JUST YOU WAIT!"

**Hiccup manages to open Toothless's fin and get them out of their death dive just in time. The two fall out of a cloud only to see the ground closing it fast, and pine trees can kill just as easily as the ground when hit at high enough speed.**

**Hiccup's scared scream is muffled by the cheat sheet in his mouth.**

**Toothless opens his wings just in time to avoid the treetops, and the two of them hurls toward a fog bank with sea stacks peeking from the top.**

"So… we aren't dying today?" Hiccup wondered out loud.

"There are still those sea stacks…" Hookfang replied, uninterested, earning himself glares from just about everyone.

**Toothless roars in fear. Hiccup removes the paper from his mouth, but the wind makes it impossible to read. The maze of sea stacks is straight ahead, and without the sheet they won't be able to go anywhere, up or through.**

**Frustrated, Hiccup throws away the sheet and just wings it. Get it? …never mind.**

People rolled their eyes. "If it's joking it's going to be alright, the hatchling will be able to go up in time," Belch stated, though Barf looked unconvinced. They were the same dragon, but apparently they thought differently.

**Hiccup presses down the pedal and opens the fin. Toothless's eyes narrow in determination as the two dive into the sea stack maze.**

**It's almost impossible to see exactly how they turn, but even at such high speeds the two cooperate in sync so well they manage. Hiccup completely relies on instincts this time, changing the pedal's position to stabilize the dragon's flight, and then again to enable him to barrel-roll to avoid a low rock.**

**The two weave through the stacks seemingly with no problem, even though they're both obviously worried, but focused.**

**After a few more turns, they exit from the other side, darting out of the fog and back in the open sky. They must've flipped Death off at least ten times in the past ten seconds.**

Everyone was gobsmacked, none more so than Hiccup.

That kind of flying was just impossible! A lot of the _dragons_ in the room couldn't pull that off! Maybe Stormfly, maybe a few other Nadders, perhaps a Monstrous Nightmare or two, but otherwise _no one_ would be able to manage! Gronckles, Zipplebacks and Nightmares just didn't have enough manoeuvrability, while Terrible Terrors would have their wings ripped off by the force of the wind.

On his part, Hiccup was equally shocked and amazed. And he'd done so all with instincts too! That was incredible! Needless to say, that had probably just doubled or tripled his confidence and self-worth. Useless? Ha, not with that kind of skill, nossir!

The teens were all silent for a few seconds before they all burst out into cheers. Snotlout even clapped Hiccup on the shoulder, shocking the skinnier boy with the act of comradeship. "Good job cuz! Show 'em how it's done!"

"Snotlout, did you just… compliment me?" he asked, bewildered.

The thuggish boy shrugged. "I'm not saying you're better than me, I bet I could've done that too, I'm just saying you aren't too bad," the boy defended himself, earning eye rolls from everyone else in the room. "Besides, we're friends now, aren't we?"

"Friends might be a stretch," Hiccup mumbled, but deep down he knew he would soon start considering _Snotlout_ a friend. After all, the biggest reason why he picked on Hiccup, was because his own father belittled him a lot. Joining his side meant leaving behind the rest – included his father.

Who knew, maybe they were more alike than he'd ever thought.

**Realizing just what happened, Hiccup throws his arms in the air. "YEEAAAHHH!"**

**With a purr, Toothless concurs, shooting a plasma blast dead ahead. A plasma blast that soon explodes with a small shockwave and turns into a fireball.**

**Hiccup's excitement turns into resignation as the fire approaches, engulfing him completely. "Oh come on…"**

A few people were worried, but flying through fire wouldn't be too dangerous – fire was only dangerous if one was too slow. If one was fast enough, it didn't have time to burn.

Stormfly walked over to the middle group and nudged Toothless. "Toothless, that was some incredible moves," she commented with what could only be described as a draconic smirk. "Rider or no rider, I'm not sure most of the others would've managed."

Toothless grinned up at her. "What did I tell you? What did I tell you? He's a dragon. Doesn't matter if he looks different. I'll call this new species… Dragon Rider! A new species of dragon that looks human but is actually a dragon capable of speaking Norse!"

Everyone halted. That made _way_ too much sense.

"Sorry to shoot down your theory, Toothless, but I'm sure who my parents were – and they were humans," Hiccup hurried to clear the minds, knowing such a rumour would be impossible to eradicate if it found some ground to sink its roots.

**Hiccup's slightly cooked face, eyes still wide from the fire and hair blown backwards, is shown sitting against Toothless. He blinks a few times and his pupils return to their normal size, having shrunk down to withstand the strong light of the explosion.**

**Toothless is heard gagging a little, and Hiccup turns to see what's wrong.**

**The dragon chivalrously offers him a regurgitated fish head, probably one of the fish he'd just eaten from his fish pile in front of him.**

Every human looked a bit grossed out. Toothless, now that he knew humans didn't eat fish raw, looked a bit sheepish, and so did the other dragons. That was supposed to be a friendly offer, not some disgusting inedible thing.

"Sorry…" the black dragon mumbled, embarrassed.

"Don't worry, bud, you couldn't have known," Hiccup reassured him with a pat on his head. After all, up until then dragons and humans only ever interacted when they had to kill each other.

**"Ah, no thanks, I'm good," Hiccup replies, a tad grossed out, showing him his fish on a stick, still cooking on a small fire. His clothes are pretty roasted, burnt black in some places.**

**A few shrill roars are heard and a bunch of differently-coloured Terrible Terrors approach them. We now know what kind of flying, flame-breathing lizard the Archipelago's dragons are – chameleons!**

Most dragons snorted and grumbled. "We aren't lizards!"

"You're still reptiles though," Hiccup replied. "Crocodiles aren't lizards either but they're reptiles."

"Reptiles are a _human_ classification," Hookfang shot back, annoyed. "It doesn't work for dragons."

"We classify everything. It makes it much easier to organize things," the boy replied with a smirk. "Besides, the mere fact you have different names for different species can only mean you too classify stuff, or you'd just consider them all dragons!"

"Shut up hatchling," Hookfang growled, unknowingly quoting almost word-perfect his future rider.

**The Terrors – one red, one yellow, one green and one light blue – approach the two predatory, but it's more than obvious that they're not aiming for the big, scary Night Fury – they probably just want to find out what's going on.**

**Oh, and the fish pile, of course. Never forget the fish pile.**

Meanwhile, the four Terrible Terrors were shaking in fear. They had to be stupid in the future – they were approaching _the_ Night Fury with the intent of stealing his food! Unbeknownst to them, they had just returned from a party in the middle of dragon nip.

Every other dragon glanced at them in pity. Even a few Vikings.

**Hiccup looks alarmed, then looks to Toothless, who growls and puts a claw around his fish to safeguard it.**

Hiccup smirked. "Greedy dragon," he chuckled.

"A large salmon, please," Toothless requested before grabbing the so-summoned fish and throwing it on the poor boy, who actually fell to the ground from the hit. "Here. Caring is sharing, so here's your part."

A lot of Vikings and dragons chuckled. "I have to keep that in mind," Gobber grinned, knowing that one-upping Hiccup was actually hard if one allowed him to reply.

Hiccup scowled before grinning and looking at Stormfly, who rolled her eyes but cooked the salmon for him. Hiccup then requested for some spices and then happily began eating his salmon without a care in the world. "Mmmh, this is _so_ good," he hummed in delight. "Thanks Toothless. You were right, maybe I _should_ eat more. I guess I'll have to half your daily supply of fish from now on and take the rest for me."

Toothless's jaw fell visibly. "Wha- NO!"

Gobber sighed and shook his head. As he said – there was no one-upping Hiccup.

The Night Fury grumbled while the teens grinned.

"Well, Toothless, he's right, he should eat more," Astrid commented, gaining a wicked smirk before pressing a hand on the side of Hiccup's torso. "I mean, I can count the ribs from over two layers of clothing…" She teased, moving the fingers from a rib to another.

Hiccup immediately went red and tried to sputter a retort, but he couldn't find any.

Astrid's smirk, however, soon turned downwards as she continued to feel his ribs. When he tried to squirm away, she actually had to hold him down before she put a hand between his fur jacket and his green vest. She frowned. That wasn't right. Hiccup was thin, sure, but she'd always thought that was just normal – not actual malnourishment. "Hiccup… when was the last time you ate an _actual_ meal?"

Hiccup finally managed to wriggle out of her grip and promptly shrunk under everyone's gazes. "T-Today, why?"

"Something that was more than just three bites of fish?" Astrid pressed on, worry seeping into her voice.

Hiccup looked around for a way to escape answering that question, but he found none. So he just went for the truth – he was an awful liar anyway. "Well, I-… I think last week?"

Murmurs began to spread among Vikings and dragons. Stoick's heart fell for not noticing it sooner. Toothless slammed his snout on the ground, since he too had missed it.

"Hiccup, that's not healthy!" Astrid exclaimed, shocked he'd even do such a thing. "Why? Your body _needs_ food! You can't just go without!"

"I'm not going without, I just don't really need all that much, I'm scrawny anyway," Hiccup tried to wave off her concern, but it didn't work out so well.

"How could I not have notice it sooner?!" Astrid cursed herself. Out of all the teens, she was not only the one who paid the most attention to Hiccup -especially since she _always_ went personally to have her axe sharpened, and she usually asked for him to do it for… unimportant reasons-, but also the most observant one in general.

It should've been pretty obvious! The twins were basically as thin as Hiccup but they ate a lot, so it was simply their normal constitution. Same went for her – she knew she was very slender by Viking standards, even for a girl her age. Fishlegs and Snotlout _clearly_ had no problems with food.

But Hiccup worked in the forge for over ten years, yet never gained any muscle mass. Normally, that meant the body didn't have enough food to actually develop muscle tissue! Besides, with a father like Stoick, it was kind of hard to believe – the man ate for five all by himself.

"Hiccup, it's not about _starving_," she told him, her worry and frustration hardening her voice more than she'd intended. "How can your body grow if you don't eat enough?"

"From now on, son, try to eat more, for our sake," Stoick added as well. When Toothless glared at him for calling Hiccup 'son', Stoick glared back with twice the intensity. The dragon held his own for a few tense seconds before he snorted in approval and looked away.

"Well since from now on he's gonna eat in the Great Hall, I guess someone can always be around to make him eat," Gobber commented, earning some agreeing grunts from the Vikings.

"Yeah, but he's never gonna be as muscly as I am," Snotlout boasted, kissing his biceps. Astrid almost threw up, but she managed to put a hand on her mouth in time.

"We'll make sure of that as well," Toothless grinned. "I mean, Hiccup looking like you? Now that's just awful. Hiccup is more of the lean type anyway. _Like a Night Fury_," he added, aimed at Stormfly, who just rolled her eyes.

_'I second that,'_ Astrid thought, then immediately blamed it on her hormones.

Khor, who had meanwhile recovered from his RTTE overdose, grinned to himself. In the future, Astrid had had time to see him grow up, but he really wondered how she'd react to older Hiccup. After all, he _was_ really hot. As a bisexual teenager, he could confirm that himself. True, his looks weren't what she loved about him, just a plus, but damn if they weren't a great plus.

Poor Snotface. He was meant to be single forever, wasn't he? Even Ruffnut rejected him at the end.

"Guys, seriously, I'm fine," Hiccup tried to protest, but the deadpans he received were anything but supporting. He suddenly scowled. "Oh, why do you even care all of a sudden? You never-"

"Hiccup." Toothless's words stopped him, though he wasn't happy about the interruption. "As much as I want to blame them, I can understand why they didn't notice. Everyone in the village is huge. Compared to them, you were tiny – they didn't realize just how tiny you actually were. Same went for me – from my point of view, you'll always be small… unless you become as fat as your Chief. Same goes for them. This one blame I can't pin on them."

He still shot the Vikings a fierce glare.

**The red Terror gets too close, and Toothless growls at him to get lost.**

**The green one is quicker and grabs the fish head Toothless threw up for Hiccup. Such a nice gift. Once he's at a safe distance from the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself, he sits on his butt and looks around. The red Terror tries to steal it from the thief, but it's caught.**

**The two growl (read: squeak) at each other before the green one fires a streak of fire at the red one, chasing him off.**

The Terrors sulked. It wasn't their fault if their roars weren't as loud and scary as the bigger dragons'.

**Toothless deadpans at them before he's surprised by a fish moving away from his pile seemingly on its own. Bewildered by it, he looks at it until the green Terror (who somehow moved from right in front of him to the pile of fish), crawls out with the fish in its jaws.**

**Eyes narrowing, the Night Fury grabs the fish as well and tubs. The fish's tail remains to the Terror, while the rest is quickly swallowed by Toothless, who to add insult to the injury also mocks him with a laugh.**

"Toothless!" Hiccup reprimanded him.

Toothless and Stormfly exchanged glances with the rest of the larger dragons. Terrible Terrors were nuisances to everyone. They deserved all the mockery they could get. Besides, he was trying to steal his fish.

**The Terror, in a show of incredible stupidity, spits out the fish's tail and claws the ground, preparing for a firefight. Hiccup looks a tad worried but Toothless is calm.**

**The tiny dragon inhales to spit fire, but Toothless is quicker, blowing a tiny fireball right into the Terror's open mouth, making it swell like a balloon for a second before he slumped on the ground, defeated.**

The Terror shrank while everyone had a good laugh. Even Hiccup couldn't hold himself back. That was just too funny.

"Weird though, aren't dragons supposed to be fireproof?" Fishlegs wondered, but everyone just shrugged. The dragons were too busy laughing to care anyway.

**The Terror stumbles away with smoke coming out of his nostrils. That's what you get for challenging a Night Fury. There's a fine line between courage and stupidity, and another between stupidity and suicide. You crossed both in one jump, little one, congratulations!**

**"Eh, not so fireproof on the inside, are you?" Hiccup smiles at him before tossing him his fish. "Here you go."**

"You have too big of a heart," Toothless grumbled at seeing the little dragon get a fish _he _had caught either way.

"Someone has to, in this duo," Hiccup grinned smugly, knowing Toothless wouldn't have a retort to that.

True to his thoughts, the dragon couldn't reply unless he wanted to contradict himself by denigrating the very trait he'd so praised in his human brother. Sorry, Dragon Rider brother. Different race.

**As Hiccup sits down again, the tiny dragon approaches him, eyes and nostrils wide in curiosity at the human who just fed him. Cautiously, he crawls to Hiccup's side and rubs his head against his hand, asking the boy to pet him.**

**Stupefied, Hiccup pets the Terror, soon receiving loud purring from the now sleeping dragon. "Everything we know about you guys… is wrong," he states in shock, realizing that for four hundreds years, Vikings have believed untrue facts that kept them from ending the war much sooner… or at least that's what he thought.**

"Indeed…" Hiccup nodded, marvelling at how trusting the Terrible Terror was just seconds after meeting him.

Vikings murmured among themselves, but something kept them from cheering – specifically, Toothless's words earlier on how the dragons still had to accept them.

That, and they still didn't know why the dragons attacked if they were so docile. True, it could've been something like 'our ancestors fought so we have to fight' or something like that. But honestly the dragons didn't look like the type of beings who would do such a thing. Nor were the Vikings, they just fought out of self-defence. They never went to, say, Changewing Island just to hunt down those dangerous dragons.

**The scene changes to a bored Hiccup flicking a pencil up his desk. The pencil slides too far to the right and he repositions it before flicking it again. After a couple of flicks, it slides to the left. Turning to get it, Hiccup catches sight of his father, Stoick the Fat- sorry, Vast.**

Stoick sighed and grumbled at the jab. "Just like Hiccup. He'll never stop bringing up my weight."

"That he does," nodded Gobber. "I don't think there's a single adult in the village whose weight he hasn't commented on one time or the other."

Hiccup hid a smirk. It was fun to point it out. Especially because as self-conscious as some Vikings were about their weight, they _still_ refused to try and eat less.

**"Dad, you're back!" he greets him in a panic, trying to hide his drawings of Toothless behind him. "Uh, Gobber's not here, so…"**

Everyone turned to the Chief, who shrank in embarrassment. "How did you not notice the unknown dragons your son drew everywhere?" Meatlug asked in bewilderment.

**"I know," his father replies, squeezing through the door. "I came looking for you."**

Hiccup's eyebrows rose, and Astrid noticed. "What? Is it a rare thing?"

"You could say that, Dad's _never_ gone looking for me unless I caused trouble or whatever," Hiccup explained, still surprised. "Most of the time he waits for me to come home and stops me from going to my room if he wants to talk. Never thought he'd actually come to the forge."

**Without looking, Hiccup closes his notebook. "You- You did?"**

**"You've been keeping secrets." Uh, duh? Who doesn't?**

Everyone exchanged glances. "What is he talking about?" asked Stormfly.

"He can't know about Toothless, he clearly just got back and no one's ever seen him," Astrid added as well. Plus, she'd be quite peeved if the Chief were to find out, in a day, what she'd been trying to discover for weeks.

**"Bah- Ah- I- I have- I have?" Hiccup stammers, clearly not expecting that, leaning on his drawings to cover them up better.**

**"Just how long do you think you could hide it from me?" Stoick inquires sternly. Again, duh, forever – it's not like you two talk a lot.**

"I really like the narrator right now," Hiccup grinned.

"I still don't," Astrid grumbled, obviously still sore for all the teasing.

"How did the Chief find out anyway?" asked Tuffnut. "Can he see the future too?"

"Can he see the past?" Ruffnut asked as well.

"Of course he can't, he must be talking about something else!" Snotlout exclaimed.

"Probably his skills in 'Dragon Training'," Fishlegs for once agreed with the shorter boy. "Since, you know, it's exactly what Gobber told him as soon as he got back. If I'd been in his shoes, I would've gone to find Hiccup immediately, so if this is the first time they meet after his return, that's what he must mean."

**"I- I- I don't know what your-" Hiccup tries to come up with a response, but Stoick cuts him off.**

**"Nothing happens on this island without me knowing about it," he states.**

The twins burst out laughing. "Yeah, sure!" Tuffnut was almost in tears.

"If he did, we would never manage a prank," Ruffnut agreed. "And instead, we Loki everyone every time!"

**"Oh?" Very intelligent, Hiccup, you really are a gem.**

**"So, let's talk… about that dragon." Hiccup's hand slides and lets the notebook fall on the ground as he slumps.**

"How did he find out?!" Toothless exclaimed, shocked.

"No idea, but somehow I doubt he knows," Hiccup replied, calm outside more than inside. "I know my dad, he wouldn't be so calm if he were to know I befriended a dragon. He'd be furious beyond definition. But, to be honest, I don't know what else it could be."

**"Oh gods. Dad, I'm so sorry, I was going to tell you, I just didn't know how to, ah…"**

"You were going to tell him?!" Toothless exclaimed, shocked.

Hiccup shrugged. "I guess. In a few years, maybe."

**He begins to move the papers hiding Toothless drawings, and Stoick begins to laugh loudly. Hiccup tries to join him in the laughter but he's too nervous. "You're not… upset?"**

**"What?!" Stoick is incredulous. "I was hoping for this!" For your son to tame and train and ride the most dangerous dragon ever?**

Stoick sighed. _'I guess the narrator's got a point. I should've really hoped for this.'_

**"Ahh, you were?" Hiccup inquires, confused.**

**"And believe me, it only gets better!" Either they're talking about two different things, or Stoick tamed a dragon in his youth. "Just wait until you spill a Nadder's guts for the first time! And mount your first Gronckle head on a spear. What a feeling!"**

Hiccup almost threw up at the thought, while a few Vikings and all the dragons glared at the Chief, if not for his words, at least for how he wanted his son to become something he _obviously_ wasn't.

"Can I roast him? Just a little bit?" Hookfang growled, knowing he would be the first one to go. Or well, not, since Hiccup didn't know how to fight.

"No, as much as I'd like to, Hiccup wouldn't want that," Toothless reprimanded him, even though he himself was straining against the very same desire.

**He playfully hits Hiccup's shoulder, sending him against the wall and into a basket. As Hiccup tries to get out, he continues. "You really had me going there, son. All those years, of the worst Viking Berk has ever seen!" Hiccup's face falls just as he gets out of the basket. "Odin, it was rough, I almost gave up on you, and all the while you were holding out on me, oh Thor Almighty!"**

"Son, I…"

Everyone looked at Hiccup, expecting to see some kind of hurt in his expression, but he just frowned sadly, having already known that for quite a while.

That was the straw that broke the dragon's back.

Murmuring and angry whispers broke out among both sides, quickly becoming stronger and stronger. Hiccup had to literally knock Toothless out with the neck-scratching thing to prevent him from attacking his father.

However, surprisingly, it wasn't a dragon the first one to speak up, nor Astrid.

"Take. That. Back."

It was Fishlegs.

Under everyone's shocked eyes, the husky boy glared at Stoick, covering up his fear with determination. He was shaking, but it was out of anger. "Hiccup's braver and more useful than most Vikings! You never trained him, yet he never hesitated to go out, defenceless, during a raid just to make you happy! During Dragon Training, Astrid was the only one to last longer than him even _before_ he began using his dragon knowledge. Gobber always says he's a great blacksmith! You are the one who has impossible expectations! Even Astrid never killed a dragon yet _Hiccup_ is the one hated for that! He knows a thousand things you'll never learn!"

"Yeah!" Even more surprising, Tuffnut and Ruffnut stood up next. "We destroyed more stuff than he did!" "And we did it on purpose!" "Yet he's the outcast! What kind of messed up yak dung is that?!"

"I know a thing or two about expectations. I know what it feels like not to be good enough." Snotlout at first looked hesitant, but as he spoke, he seemed to gain more courage. "But my dad at least wanted me to do things I _could_ do, and was ready to train or teach me. I hate the fact Hiccup had to feel like that his whole life and that I was too much of a coward to do anything but make it worse. To want people to aim for the Moon and then be disappointed when they can't reach it is wrong, but to turn all the village against them, even if unknowingly, that's just cruel."

"I hate myself for not seeing it sooner, but Hiccup is not a bad Viking, he's just different. We all are. _Everyone_ can grow up to be different." Astrid didn't feel like she needed to say it after what the others had said, but she wanted to add her own piece, to show she sided with them, with _him_. Toothless stood up as well. "Hiccup made the right choice and didn't let your expectations change who he was. I'm glad he didn't, because now I can see that, and I can follow his example. Maybe he is the worst Viking on Berk, if being a Viking means being big, mean and cold. But he's the best person I know, that much I'm sure of."

"Guys…"

"No, Hiccup, they… they are right." Stoick took a deep sigh and let it out alongside any anger he felt at being insulted so freely. The teens were nervous now, realizing just what they'd done – they had spoken up against the Chief himself. "I was blind, and foolish, and cruel. I realize that now. No – I've been realizing that ever since I saw you free that Night Fury, but now it's all coming together."

"I was blind. I _chose_ to be blind, because I thought that if I ignored the problems I couldn't solve, eventually they would solve themselves on their own. I thought that without Val, your mother, with me, I had no hopes of ever being a good father, and so trying would only make it worse.. I thought that if I ignored how much misery I was causing you, it would eventually fix itself, somehow. And by doing that, I blinded myself to how much my actions influenced you. I blinded myself to how much _I_ first and foremost turned everyone against you, _my own son_." The Chief dejectedly took his head in his hands. "The problem was never you, it was me. You never did anything wrong. You never _were_ anything wrong. You were just different from how I was, and instead of trying to understand you, I gave up. Me, the Chief of a tribe who has been fighting a seemingly endless war for four hundreds years, gave up after a few years of not understanding his son. I'm sorry, Hiccup, I'm so sorry. I failed you, and you had to pay the consequences of my actions."

Toothless calmed down, and everyone waited for Hiccup's response.

"Dad… you didn't fail me. Sure, you could've done more, and yes you did cause me a lot of pain, and-" Toothless bumped his shoulder into Hiccup's, snapping him out of it. If he were to list all of Stoick's wrongdoings, he'd be there forever, or at least so the dragon thought. "But you didn't fail. You said it yourself, you _almost_ gave up on me. Even after a decade of trying, even after a decade of me causing untold damage and ridiculing myself in front of the entire village, you never let go of the hope that one day, I would be great like you. Not in size, of course, 'cause, you know…" Stoick raised an eyebrow. "B-But anyway! Anyone else would've written me off as a lost cause." He ignored Toothless grumbling about how he wouldn't have done that. "But you didn't. You kept trying to teach me, even if it wasn't what I wanted to do. _I_ was the one to reject your teachings. Sure, you didn't understand me, but I'm to blame. I understood you, but I never tried hard enough to make you understand _me_."

"Yes you did, son," Stoick cut him off, sadness clear in his voice. "You did. But I didn't listen. I _never_ listened. And even when I did, I soon forgot that you aren't me." He didn't miss Hiccup's downcast frown. "Nor I want you to be. You are yourself son. Great or not, Viking or dragon, fat or runt, it doesn't matter as long as it's _your_ choice. I forgot that. It's your choice, it should've always been your choice, but I took that from you and made it my choice. And I choose wrongly."

Hiccup didn't reply.

Stoick took a deep breath, and then he stood up. As he walked over to his son, the other teens stepped aside, letting him pass out of fear or respect or approval, he didn't know. Soon, he was standing in front of the boy. The Night Fury, oddly enough, didn't growl, or glare at him. His gaze was instead judging, unnerving. He'd just admitted he had made the wrong choice, and now he had to choose carefully. He wouldn't be getting any more chances.

"You chose to believe dragons aren't the mindless beasts we thought they were. Your belief brought us here, now, to witness the truth. As opposite to what people think, being a Viking does not mean being _physically_ strong, or stubborn, or skilled with an axe. Being a Viking means overcoming all odds no matter what, and today, we've seen that's exactly what you did. What you've been doing for years."

"If you say dragons can be tamed, trained, _befriended_, then I believe you. As of right now, I declare that the ongoing war with the dragons… IS OVER!"

The hall _exploded_. There wasn't a single being who wasn't cheering, except for a stunned Hiccup, who looked up to his father in shock. "D-Dad?"

"LET ME FINISH!" Of course, Stoick's bellow cut through the noise in a second. "I've heard a lot of appellatives-" "He knows what that means?" "-and yes Hiccup, I do know what that means. As I was saying, I heard a lot of appellatives used for my son. I think it's time he receives a _real_ title."

"Hiccup the Dragonlover?" Fishlegs suggested shyly.

"That sounds like they're dating," Ruffnut laughed.

"Don't tell Gobber," Tuffnut grinned as well.

"Hiccup the Dragon Rider!" Stoick proclaimed, ignoring everyone else. Another round of cheers went up, and Hiccup was beaming. Toothless grumbled about that being his race and not his title but he was grinning too, in his own draconic way.

"Fitting, I guess," Gobber grinned, proud of his apprentice.

Hiccup dried his tears and smiled up at his father before he hugged the much bigger man, much to everyone's shock. A lot couldn't even remember a time where the two had shared an openly affectionate moment.

**"With you doing so well in the Ring, we finally have something to talk about," Stoick grabs a stool and sits on it, ignoring how it's Hiccup-sized and not Stoick-sized.**

**Awkward moment ensures.**

**Hiccup looks away, biting his lip and avoiding his dad's eyes. He looks at the Chief, takes a deep breath, then exhales and looks away again.**

**Stoick, as oblivious as ever, drags the stool a bit closer, earnestness painted all over his face as he waits for Hiccup to start.**

**Aaaawkwaaaaaard.**

Both Haddocks couldn't deny it _was_ actually a very awkward moment. Or would be, since that was the future. They winced in unison.

**"Oh!" Stoick suddenly says, breaking the very very awkward silence between the two, who never really talked with each other – more AT each other. "I- I… I brought you something."**

"Since when does the Chief stutter?" Snotlout asked, incredulous.

"I guess we now where Hiccup got it from… at least when Stoick is nervous…" Fishlegs commented, though softly so not to anger the Chief.

**He grabs a simple horned helmet and casually adjusts one of the horns by twisting it back up. "To keep you safe… in the ring."**

"Wait, does that mean you didn't want him safe before?" Snotlout immediately regretted his words as he saw Stoick glare at him fiercely, while Hiccup deadpanned. "Sorry! Shutting up now!"

**"Wow…" Hiccup takes the helmet, genuinely happy for the gift. "Thanks."**

**"Ah, your mother would've wanted you to have it." Hiccup smiles at the mention of his mother and puts a hand on the helmet, testing its solidity. "It's half of her breastplate." Immediately, he takes off the hand, slightly weirded out. He gives a single chuckle.**

Hiccup winced as well. That was embarrassing to say the least.

A few Vikings and dragons chuckled or outright laughed at the gift.

Astrid was secretly seething. She'd always been happy with her breasts, with her lithe figure as a whole, but seriously, from what she'd heard, Hiccup should've gotten his scrawniness from his mother. Thin, with breasts like those? That was just plain unfair.

"Before any of you comment," Stoick growled, ready to end any comment on his wife's size, and to end the commenter as well. "I meant we took her breastplate, _which is a part of the armour_, and reforged it into that helmet."

**Did she wear it with the horns on? Because seriously, a horny breastplate just sounds awful.**

Stoick went crimson in rage, but he knew from previous experience that trying to change the narration was pointless. Unless it was Gothi the one to do so.

**"Matching set," Stoick says, tapping his helmet. That woman must've had some serious problems. Poor lass. "Keeps her… keeps her close, you know?"**

No one commented this time, out of respect. Suddenly, everyone felt dirty. They were intruding in a very personal moment between father and son.

**"Wear it proudly. You deserve it." Hiccup is still slack-jawed. Probably not in a good way either. Well, in his defence, it's- you know what? I'll stop being an ass for now, until after the father-son bonding. "You've held up your end of the deal."**

**"Yee-aaa-sssss-" Hiccup tries a mix of 'yeah' and 'so' to continue the conversation, but nothing comes out. He then fakes an exaggerate yawn. "I should really… get to bed…"**

**"Yeah…" Stoick nods, feeling the awkwardness as well. "Yeah… Good… Good talk!"**

**"Yeah, yeah, I'll see you back at the house, thanks for stopping by…**

**"I'm glad I stopped by…"**

**"…and for the… breast hat."**

**"Glad you like the… the hat."**

Everyone burst into laughter. Intruding into a personal moment or not, the Haddocks were comedy gold sometimes.

"I guess Hiccup does take a lot after Stoick," Fishlegs pointed out with a grin.

"That was even better than me and Ruff!" Tuffnut exclaimed, knowing when to give credit for a good old talking-over.

"Yeah! We have to stop and let the other talk, you just went wild and replied to each other while you were still _both_ talking!" his sister was quick to add.

**Stoick clears his throat and the two look at each other for a second. "Ah… good night"**

**Hiccup nods in goodnight as well, and the Chief squeezes through the door once more. As soon as he's gone, the boy puts his hands on his hips, shakes his head, and sighs heavily.**

**On the other side, Stoick does EXACTLY the same, but nods instead of shaking his head, satisfied with his first conversation with his son in a long time.**

"You two are _so_ similar!" Snotlout almost screeched, basically on the ground laughing. They really were comedy gold.

**However, at the first steps he takes, he bangs his head again a bunch of pans and back-pedals quickly, bumping into a rack of weapons, sending it clattering to the floor even when he tries to catch it. Like son, like father, both clumsy apparently. He straightens, straightens his helmet, and then walks away after confirming no one saw him.**

Vikings and dragon couldn't hold it, chuckles spread like wildfire while the Chief groaned and hid his face into his hand in exasperation. "I am never going to live that down."

"Welcome to the club," Hiccup, Astrid and Toothless all said at the same time before looking at each other and sharing a laugh. Hiccup then continued, "You're not the first to be made fun of, Dad. This 'movie' has a very peculiar sense of humour. Mostly offensive."

"Reminds me of you, in some ways," Gobber cut in with a grin, startling everyone with his sudden appearance. "What? War's over, I can go wherever I want!"

Khor, meanwhile, grinned, proud that his sarcasm had been compared to Hiccup's, even if vaguely. He would strive to do his best. Maybe one day, the student would become the teacher.

**_One of the things I really hate in fanfiction is how people use canon behaviours in certain timesets to define people, ignoring the rest. Take Astrid - in most pre-movie1 fanfictions where she's not desperately in love with Hiccup for some reason, she acts more or less like a female Snotlout, only less physical and more aggressive. (I said most)_**

**_Instead, the second half of movie 1, as well as all of Riders of Berk, Defenders of Berk, RTTE Seasons 1&2&3&4&5&6, movie 2 and 3, all show us she's actually a smart, caring, kind person who cares a lot about his friends, even more about Hiccup, has a strange bold/shy personality when it comes to said boy, speaks her mind but always tries to help._**

**_Where does all of that go, I wonder, in so many fanfictions?_**

**_I mean, using 40-50 minutes of her behaviour against... what? 2550 whooping minutes of the other things I listed._**

**_Same goes for the teens, and Stoick, and the villagers._**

**_Come on! I can understand every author has the right to paint people as they want, but that's OoCness._**

**_Let's admit it - the teens themselves aren't that bad. The twins, so destructive, aren't actually THAT destructive. Snotlout is arrogant, but he's more likely to boast and then sulk when no one cares, rather than physically bully Hiccup and hurt him and isolate him to the point of making him an outcast. Fishlegs is actually one of the few most get right._**

**_And Hiccup... man, how many times I see him painted as a coward? Trembling whenever someone makes a threat? Seriously? When he wasn't fazed by Alvin's, Dagur's, Viggo's or Ryker's threats of torture? Or how many times his poor combat skills are shown to be him being clumsy, instead of him being unwilling to harm? He doesn't even try - that's the point. When training with Astrid in Dawn of Destruction (RTTE S5 Ep7), he is defeated, but it's clear he's not an idiot with a sword. Oh, and by the way - Hiccup is definitely NOT shy once he's in a relationship. Has no problem initiating contact like hand holding or hugs, or kisses, as repeatedly shown. I have no idea why people think he's shy..._**

**_Also, in The Zippleback Experience (RTTE S2 Ep6), he knocks Snotlout out in one hit. Lucky hit? Sure. Surprise advantage? Sure. Doesn't change the fact that Snotlout went down after being hit by Hiccup, even though he's been hit by a lot of things that should've been much stronger. So it's not like Hiccup's as weak as authors often portray him._**

**_Sorry, I just needed to get this off my chest, I'll rant briefly about Stoick now. It's just that, so much potential for stories, carelessly unused because OoCness is easier._**

**_And now, Stoick. Often portrayed as a bad guy. I think he is someone who made a lot of mistakes, but a great person. He had to lead the village alone, as Valka says in HTTYD3, and had a son so different from him, it was hard to talk with him. Not to mention that, Hiccup's a hero only because his methods worked, only because he captured the ONLY dragon who could kill the Red Death. Otherwise, nuh-huh. Stoick would've been right - Hiccup inventing things would've only led to him getting himself killed early on. He was just looking out for his son._**

**_He just made a metric ton of mistakes. Mistakes he then tries to make amends for. He is shown to greatly trust Hiccup in the series Dragons. Not just that, but he sometimes trust Hiccup's judgement over his own, like in Last Auction Heroes (RTTE S3 Ep...12? I think?). And he has a lot of faith in him. And can give a lot of advice. All in all - a good father, even if it took him a while._**

**_So I really don't understand why people have Stoick being a distant father, if not outright a bad person. He's made mistakes - we all have._**

**_There are seriously only a few characters who are unredeemable in the franchise, and even then, only because they didn't TRY to redeem themselves. For example, I don't consider Viggo a good guy, even with how he died (saving Hiccup, SPOILERS!). He was trying to atone for his past sins. Same for Johann (though I agree with Tuff, he does have my respect for how he fooled all of them...)_**

**_And with this, my rant is over._**

**_You might've noticed, yes I took inspiration from Stoick's proclamation in Astrid's story, in Darkest Night (RTTE S6 Ep10)._**

**_And YES, I TOTALLY AGREE WITH TOOTHLESS! DRAGON RIDERS ARE JUST HUMAN-LOOKING DRAGONS! THEY EVEN HAVE AN ALPHA! (Hiccup)_**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**


	10. How to Get a Girlfriend

The Vikings and the Dragons had reached a point where no one really knew what to do. Not everyone knew that, but after the crucial moment of an age was over, people usually didn't have a clue on what would happen next.

Vikings and Dragons were no different. Neither side knew if they were supposed to hang out with the other, or stick to their own race.

A tiny group in the middle of the room just threw those indecisions to the side. The teens and their future dragons were actually discussing with the Chief of Berk how the peace would work out.

"Hiccup, we can't just let them eat all our fish without any kind of contribution!" Stoick boomed, even though he was trying to speak normally. "I'm all for peace, but this cannot mean enslavement for us."

"It wouldn't be permanent – just long enough to figure out how the dragons can help!" Hiccup replied hurriedly. "Look, I know no one is gonna like it, but we all have to make sacrifices. The dragons _want_ to help, but if they don't know how, they're not gonna be able to."

"Well, why don't you tell them not to eat us out of fish?" Stoick offered, gesturing to him not unlike he'd done not too long ago in the 'movie'. However, this time it was in expectation, not disappointment.

"Would Snotlout stop eating if I told him to? Or the twins stop pranking? Or Fishlegs studying dragons? Or Astrid training?" Hiccup shot back, opening his arms in a shrug. "They may listen to me but it's not like I can control them or anything. I can _handle_ them better than most. Not control them."

"To be honest, if I were to vote between the Red Death and you, I'd choose you any day," Hookfang commented, snorting. "Though that's a given. If he weren't so keen on killing us all, I would've voted _him_ over the Queen," he added, jerking his head towards Stoick.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," Hiccup quipped sarcastically before sighing and turning to look at his face. "Dad, we'll find a way. Besides, would they really be so different from the dozens of Vikings whose only occupation is being warriors? No offence, Astrid."

She scowled at him anyway, then remembered just how much the 'movie' loved to mock her scowls, and went for punching his arm.

"Offence taken I guess…"

That sarcasm, which was both endearing and annoying, made her want to punch him again.

She stopped herself, if only to prevent it from going on forever.

"Anyway, as I was saying, we have our fair share of idle villagers in Berk, don't we?" Hiccup gestured to the villagers on one side of the room. "Like, Spitelout? When has he ever done any farming, or fishing? Maybe hunting, but more for sport than anything."

"My dad doesn't count, he's one-of-a-kind," Snotlout butted in. "And not the good one-of-a-kind either, he's a one-of-a-kind pain in the buttocks."

"So that's who you got it from," Astrid snorted at him.

Hiccup ignored them as he turned back to his father. "So, really, it wouldn't be anything new. We can figure something out, Dad, I know we can."

"Son, I understand you want this war to end quickly – I share your eagerness, but we have to take in consideration the well-being of the village as well," Stoick replied, sighing. "Hiccup, until we can find a way to integrate dragons in our lives, I'm afraid we cannot welcome them in our village."

"B-But that's ridiculous! Do you even hear what you're saying? Not welcome them? They should be Berkians just as much as we are!"

"Are you calling me ridiculous?" Stoick inquired in a dangerous tone, narrowing his eyes at the boy.

The boy who, on his part, just looked a bit uncomfortable. "Of course not, I would never call my father ridiculous." Stoick nodded in approval, glad that at least his son wasn't _that_ disrespectful. "I'm calling my _chief_ ridiculous."

The noise in the hall stopped as everyone turned to stare, shocked, at the boy who had just called Chief Stoick the Vast ridiculous. A couple of chuckles broke out too.

Said Viking wasn't keen on sharing that amusement. "Hiccup, I understand that you want the dragons to live with us, but we're way too different to just up and move in with each other! We may call ourselves Berkians, but dragons are not Vikings and Vikings are not dragons!"

_Snooooooooore_.

Everyone turned around to pinpoint the origin of the awful noise that belonged to the deepest, most nightmarish pits of Helheim, a sound that would have even the brave Tyr cover his ears.

Khor was snoring, having fallen asleep on the ground.

"Somebody wake him up, he's been at it for two seconds and already I can't stand it any more!" Toothless roared, trying to paw his ears shut, with little to no success.

Stoick quickly went to shake the man awake, but that had little effect – in fact, he just seemed to snore louder, if that was even possible.

"I got it!" Hiccup turned to the dragons' side and yelled out, "For the love of Thor, if there's a Scauldron among you, spit some water at him! _Without_ heating it up please!"

A large dragon, the same species he'd asked for, reared back her head and took aim before nailing the shot.

Khor yawned, stretched and sat up as if waking up by being drenched was something normal. "Sup guys?" He then remembered what he'd just done and groaned. "Oh, I… I snored, didn't I?"

"Like a stampede of wild boars," Tuffnut informed him cheerily.

"Like a stampede of wild boars on fire," Ruffnut amended.

"Like a stampede of Monstrous Nightmares on fire!" Tuffnut amended the amendment.

"Jeez, so much for reassuring me," Khor sighed. "Oh well, I had to talk with Phoenix one way or… err… I… I mean, I have to make it up to you guys one way or the other. I'll cook you something after some more of the movie. Let me start cooking now, you can eat later."

"Hey, I like this apology, you should snore more often!" Snotlout cackled at the thought of free food before thinking about it. "Well no. I mean, your food would have to be _very_ good to be worth it."

"Oh, trust me, it will be. I'm Italian."

"Uh?"

"It means I'm from Italy, a country a long way South of yours," Khor explained with a shrug. "Famous for their cooking. And not without reason. I may not be a chef but I can make some wicked dishes."

He turned around to walk away – presumably to go cook – before stopping and casting them a glance from over his shoulder. "Oh… and stop arguing by the way. Sit down and watch the mov- I mean, watch the future."

"You're not gonna watch it with us?" Gobber asked, confused.

"I watched it many times already, why do you think I haven't been commenting at all?" Khor shrugged again. "Enjoy…"

The Vikings and the Dragons just shrugged as well before turning to look at Stoick, who had been on the verge of continuing the argument. He just sighed and sat down.

**A Gronckle is seen flying in an arena, glaring at the people on the walkways around it as they cheer, before it passes by a wooden barricade behind which Hiccup is hiding, holding his axe and shield, new helmet on his head.**

Stoick nodded. That helmet looked good on him. Even though he knew Hiccup would never keep it for long. He didn't like to wear anything over his hair – he said he didn't like feeling his hair pressing against his head.

**Astrid appears, pressing her back against the very same wooden barricade. Scowling.**

By then she wasn't even affected any more.

**Hiccup smiles at her. Polite, and with a crush, huh? Too bad. Astrid yanks his shield down and glares straight at him. "Stay out of my way. I'm winning this thing."**

Stoick and Gobber sent the girl a disapproving look she replied with an incredulous one – at least she didn't go telling him to stop being himself!

**Odd detail, when she said that, she felt the inexplicable need to get as close to his face as possible. She does know that glares only work when someone can see them, right? Oh whatever.**

"Getting old…" Astrid drawled.

**Sorry, you try to be sarcastic about that without mentioning that you might've wanted to kiss him right then and there, with how close you were.**

Hiccup groaned in embarrassment while Astrid glared at the screen even harder. A few chuckles were quickly silenced by her glower.

**Thought so. Anyway…**

**"Ah- Please, by all means!" he replies, for once not even sarcastic. Poor boy, doesn't he know Murphy's law?**

"What's Murphy's law?" Fishlegs spoke up.

"Oh! What if it's something that says that if something you have no control over can go wrong, it will go wrong in the most horrible of ways?!" Tuffnut exclaimed, exchanging an excited look with his sister, who didn't seem to return the enthusiasm as she stared at the ground, depressed. "The toasts always fall on the yak butter's side…"

Everyone shook their heads at the twins.

**Hiccup stands up to see his father on the stands, looking at him with pride and expectation, pumping a fist ever so slightly. Hiccup adjusts his helmet and forces a one-second strained fake smile (yeah it was really fake) on his face before a completely unenthusiastic expression takes over his face.**

**He looks SO done with this shit already.**

"I can see why," Hiccup snorted. His future self was admitted amusing with his expression. Was he like that too?

**The Gronckle is hovering past a few wooden barricades. Astrid peeks out from one of them. HOW DID THE GRONKLE NOT SEE HER SHE WAS ON THE SAME SIDE OF THE BARRICADE AS THE DRAGON! That aside, the girl quickly moves to another shelter, pressing her back into it as the dragon flies lazily ahead.**

Meatlug blushed very hard in embarrassment, so hard it was actually visible, a slight reddening of her cheek scales.

**Astrid throws herself behind another barricade and grips her axe. "This time. This time, for sure."**

**"YAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH-"**

**She jumps over the barricade with a battle cry, skipping another one with a similar jump, before stopping dead in her tracks.**

A lot of people and dragons burst out laughing at her face, to which she quickly shrank in embarrassment.

**The Gronckle is on the ground, feet in the air, with a cringing and flinching Hiccup in front of it, without a shield, an axe or even his helmet. He quickly regains his composure and tries to smile while gesturing to the dragon, as if to say he hadn't had much of a choice.**

Astrid grumbled but didn't say anything. Hiccup had beaten her fair and square even if she'd never admit it out loud.

A little ways away, Khor shook his head with a smile. How much had Astrid changed from fourteen slash fifteen, to sixteen slash seventeen or whatever her age was in Race to the Edge. To be honest he preferred her older self – she still was the badass warrior he adored but didn't have that overly tough outer shell she kept up at all times, only lowering it when she felt like others needed it or when she thought no one would mock her for it – like when she was with Hiccup.

Honestly, Khor loved the fact it took them three years to get together – both had some really big recovering to do after the end of the war. Hiccup gained some confidence and optimism and his sarcasm became more of his signature than a way of coping with his life. And Astrid… well, to be honest the only way he could describe it was that she'd had to learn how to live again.

_'Praise be onto DreamWorks and their employees for such a wonderful masterpiece,'_ he thought, discreetly wiping a tear from his eye. So what if thinking about Hiccstrid made him tear up? They were just too damn perfect! Now he had to focus though. Food didn't cook itself.

**"NO!" Astrid screams in frustration, stomping her foot like a five-year-old (though a five-year-old with a sharpened axe… who the hell thought THAT was a good idea?) and starts to wildly swing her axe around to vent her anger… fruitlessly. "You son of a half-troll, rat-eating, munge-bucket!"**

Astrid froze as she realized just what she'd just called her Chief.

"Half… troll?" Stoick inquired dangerously. "Nice to see you have such a high opinion of me, Astrid…"

Damn, why Stoick's sarcasm made her cringe? Hiccup used sarcasm all the time, she should've been used to it by then!

Thank the Gods, Gobber managed to break up the argument… in his own way. "So it was you, you dastardly thief!" he exclaimed, swinging his hook at Stoick, who dodged it. "That's why you only stole my left socks! You're only _half_ a troll!"

"Gobber, I didn't steal your socks! It was probably the twins in the first place!" Stoick boomed, fed up with the troll nonsense. "And you, lass, don't think we're done yet. I am still your Chief."

"Sorry Chief…" Astrid mumbled, looking down. Stoick was terrifying when he wanted to be. Damn, she was being scolded for something so minor and she looked down. How did Hiccup manage to actually look his father in the eyes, while being harshly scolded in front of the entire village for causing a lot of chaos and destruction, and still be sassy and argumentative?

**"Wait! Wait," Stoick calls from the crowd as Gothi taps her staff against the iron railing around the arena.**

**Shoulders hunched, Hiccup tries to walk away. "So… later?"**

**In vain. Gobber snatches him up by the back of his clothes with his hook. "Oh-oh, no so fast!"**

"Ew! Gobber, your hook's filthy, keep it off my clothes!" Hiccup made a sound of disgust.

"What do you mean, 'filthy'?! I keep it nice and clean!" Gobber replied while he scratched his butt with his hook.

Hiccup just deadpanned at him. "I'm the one who keeps your stuff clean. Aren't you the current record holder for rarest baths ever taken? When was the last time you bathed, three years ago?"

"I bathed last year!"

The entirety of Berk _and_ the dragons made a sound of disgust at that. Vikings might've been ferocious warriors, but they did keep themselves clean. Going an entire year without bathing was just awful.

"And that's why we have the Gobber Bathing Day," Stoick sighed, knowing fully well that every year, Gobber had to be chased down and forced to take a bath.

"Which I'll never forgive you for!"

**"Eh… I'm kinda late for- Agh!" Hiccup is interrupted by Astrid, who puts an axe to his throat.**

**"What?! Late for what, exactly?!" she all but demands an answer, flicking her sweaty hair out of her eyes. Oddly enough, her fringe lands all but perfectly just over her left eye.**

Astrid huffed. She'd practised, obviously. She couldn't afford limited sight in combat, so learning how to flick her hair off her face efficiently had been a good choice. Even though most people just sweat-dropped at that.

Her father, Harold, chuckled nervously. He had always supported his daughter's dream to become a Shield Maiden, but seeing her work harder than most adult Vikings… well, it made him wonder if he should be a little less supportive and a little more helpful instead of letting his daughter work herself to the bone.

**Hiccup flails his arms to keep his balance as he leans away from the very-much-sharp axe. **

**"Okay, quiet down! The Elder has decided," Stoick announces, lifting his arms up in the universal gesture for 'silence'.**

**The Elder Gothi never says anything, so it's unclear how she's gonna decide. Probably pointing.**

Gothi shrugged. Fair enough. She could've had Stoick read her drawings, but she still used those only when she needed to.

**Astrid composes herself while Hiccup just rubs his neck. Gobber, standing behind them, lifts a hook over Astrid's head.**

**Gothi shakes her head. The crowd oohes in surprise, and even Gobber is shocked. He then points at Hiccup with a slight frown and a raised eyebrow.**

Gobber wished he could hit his future self on the head with the biggest hammer he could find, or have him shot by that Night Fury. True, Hiccup actually winning Dragon Training was something he'd never thought he'd see – something he thought impossible no matter how much he liked the boy. But to behave like that was just over the line. He could've shown a bit of pride instead of doubtfulness.

Hiccup just looked down. That was it. No matter how much Gobber cared for him, that clearly proved that he'd otherwise agreed with the _entire_ village – he couldn't be a true Viking. Not that he wanted to any more, but the illusion of support had been nice. It was part of the reason why he'd kept trying for years. In the end, Gobber was like his father – he loved him, but didn't support his goals. He was just better at showing his care for him.

It was really true that you realize how much something valued only after you lose it. He really wished he could just un-see what he'd just watched and remain blissfully ignorant to the truth.

Snotlout was confused by Gobber's expression. True, Hiccup going from failure to wonder boy had been _very_ shocking, but by then everyone knew he was doing _awesome_ in Dragon Training. So why all the surprise when Gothi chose him? He had just downed a Gronckle by freaking scratching its neck! Or whatever, he hadn't seen that in particular. Even if he hadn't killed it, the Gronckle was at his complete mercy. He could've killed it with a single strike of his axe -maybe two or three given he was Hiccup-, better and quicker than Astrid ever could – that _anyone_ ever could. So why all the surprise? Hiccup was the best at taking down Dragons – he just didn't go through with it. He had freaking hit a Night Fury mid-flight, on a cloudy night!

Astrid was just worried her future self would do something rash, violent or stupid. Knowing her and how her anger worked, she feared it might be all three. Like confronting Hiccup about it after cornering him somewhere. Or even worse, following him to the cove to learn his secret. _'Note to self, whenever Hiccup has a secret he doesn't want to tell you, don't pry.'_

Toothless just nudged his Rider with his head. "Come on, they now know better."

"That's easy for you to say – you aren't the one in the middle of a Viking crowd who want you to kill the Monstrous Nightmare in the Arena."

The dragon just chuckled sheepishly. "I had… forgotten about that tiny detail."

"I didn't."

**Gothi nods with a tiny smile, one eye open and the other narrowed in a slightly dumb expression (not taking this back, you deserve it), as she raises a finger as if to say 'Yes, exactly, you got the right one'.**

**The crowd cheers loudly while Hiccup winces heavily. He braves a look at Astrid, who is absolutely seething with fury. Yeah, it was nice knowing you Hic.**

**"You've done it! You've done it, Hiccup! You get to kill the dragon!" Gobber's joyously shouts as he hugs Hiccup with his hook, with the boy still looking at Astrid with a mix of apology, worry and frustration for having won while trying to lose.**

"Wait, why was he trying to lose?" Tuffnut said, scratching his head.

Ruffnut hit him. "Idiot, he was trying to lose so that Astrid would have to kill the dragon instead of him!"

"But if he's friends with dragons… wouldn't it be better if _he_ fought the dragon… instead of someone who would _actually_ kill it?" the male twin questioned again, making Hiccup gain a slightly thoughtful look.

"You know, you're actually right, Tuffnut" He then realized what he said. "Oh Gods I just put 'you're right' and 'Tuffnut' in the same sentence…"

"Eh, not as shocking as talking dragons," Snotlout shrugged, gesturing to Toothless. "Or you riding a freaking Night Fury."

"Yeah, but still…" Sighing, Hiccup then turned back to Tuffnut. "To answer your question, Tuffnut, I know it might sound cruel but at the time Toothless was really the only dragon I actually cared for. No offence to the others, but they still raided us – I didn't think they were good or anything."

"Fair enough," Hookfang grumbled. "We didn't exactly did a lot to deserve mercy."

**The other teens cheer as they surround Hiccup. Fishlegs tosses him up and hoists him on his shoulder like a slightly overgrown child. "Yeah!" Tuffnut and Ruffnut cheer, pumping their fists in the air and howling in victory.**

**Wow, instant friends.**

Fishlegs shrank, feeling like he only became friends with Hiccup because he was now the hotshot of the teens. And to be honest, it was the complete truth – Hiccup actually tried to avoid them so it wasn't like they had been drawn in by his personality. Astrid did more or less the same, except she was more violent with Snotlout, so really it was just a matter of reputation.

**Hiccup laughs nervously as Stoick pumps his fist with a giant smile. "That's my boy!"**

**"Yeah, Yes… I can't wait…" Hiccup cheers weakly, and it's so obvious he's faking it it's a wonder no one notices. "I'm so…"**

"Excited?" Ruffnut offered.

"Scared?" added Tuffnut. "Since, you know, a Monstrous Nightmare is still a Monstrous Nightmare."

"Proud?" Snotlout pitched in as well. He then shrugged at the looks he received. "Yeah, he might not want to kill the dragon any more, but he still beat Astrid. That's quite the achievement."

"Do you even know what achievement means, Snotlout?" Astrid huffed, though he was right, beating her _was_ quite the achievement.

Hiccup just remained silent. He had an inkling what would happen.

**The scene changes to Hiccup walking in the cove with a large basket on his back, the same he used for Toothless's fish. "-Leaving! We're leaving," he calls out to Toothless, with no answer. "Let's pack up. Looks like you and me are taking a little vacation… forever."**

There was a second of silence, then… "WHAT?!"

"What do you mean, leaving?!"

"What are you doing?!"

"Where are you going?!"

"Why would you leave?!"

"I like vacations." That was Bucket.

"Hiccup!"

"What do you think you're doing?!"

The teens were shocked too, but nowhere nearly as much as the adults. Heck, Snotlout was honestly more surprised Hiccup had actually lasted that long instead of disappearing sooner. And Astrid couldn't really fault him for that, having seen what kind of a person he was. Unfortunately, not everyone was as smart as them. For example the twins were just excited there was some drama going on.

Hiccup backed away from the wall of questions and exclamations thrown his way from the people of Berk, all shocked that their Heir would just up and leave. Toothless, seeing this, curled his tail around the boy and snarled at the Vikings, making them quiet down. Thank Thor for being still able to make dragon noises.

"Silence, you all! Do I _really_ have to explain _everything_ about Hiccup?!" he roared, honestly fed up with how little the Berkians seemed to understand about Hiccup. Which was mostly due to the simple fact he understood the boy far more than it should've been natural, but he didn't know that. He was starting to realize it though. "Hiccup knows dragons aren't like you thought they were. He also knows he won't be able to use any kind of tricks against the Nightmare, and that even if he could he would still be forced to fight to the death. And the only peace he's ever found in the last few years has been from _outside_ the village. Why would it be surprising for him to leave with me and just go where the wind takes us? Maybe it wouldn't be better for you, but it definitely would for him."

The wall of Vikings slowly came back down, their shouts reduced to murmurs. Stoick then stepped forwards. "Hiccup, I-"

"Dad, there's no need to make a speech or to try and make me stay – I'm not going anywhere in the first place," Hiccup interrupted him. Alongside Gobber, he was maybe the only one on the island who would dare do that. "This is the future, and a future where you all don't know anything about what dragons really are like. Here, now that you know, things might be different."

Stoick was silent for a second, before he sighed and nodded. "You're right. You're totally right." He made to sit down before he added, almost as an afterthought, "Thank you, son."

**He is wearing his flying harness. He drops the basket on the ground and opens it for a last-minute check-up. He starts to fiddle with his harness's hooks as he gets back up, sighing. "Ah, man…"**

**As he gets up, he doesn't see Astrid sitting on the rock before him, with her axe on her lap and a sharpening stone in her hand. Odd. The sun was behind her so he should've at least seen her shadow. Oh well…**

Everyone looked at Hiccup in pity, even the Dragons. That was just about the worst thing that could've possibly happened, especially after he'd just announced out loud his desire to leave the island.

Astrid winced. As she said, rash, violent and stupid. The worst possible combination for any actions to take. Violent was fine, but violent and stupid usually didn't work. And Hiccup didn't deserve her anger – not that she'd ever tell him anyway.

**She passes the stone on the axe's blade, startling him. "Ah! What the-" he stumbles on a rock and almost falls, but rights himself. "A-Ah- ah- ahh… W-What a-are y-you doing here?"**

**Astrid examines her axe, dropping the stone. "I want to know what's going on," is all she says before planting the axe's handle on the stone and pushing herself off of it. "No one just gets as good as you do." She twirls her axe from one hand to the other as she stalks over to him, who flinches. "****_Especially_****you."**

"Burn!" Snotlout called out with a grin.

"Shut up Snotlout," both Astrid, Hiccup and Toothless said, making him sulk.

"Though she does have a point." Fishlegs shrank when the others looked at him. "I-I mean, nobody's ever been able to do that stuff before. Dropping a dragon with just a little scratch? I-It's unheard of, even in the Book of Dragons! A-And Hiccup never received any kind of training, so it's even less likely for him to have just learned it by experimenting… even though that's actually what happened… So I guess I can see why Astrid would say that. As she said, anyone doing that would be suspicious, even more when the guy who was ridiculed _exactly_ because of his lacking fighting skills starts to beat even the strongest warrior of our age…"

Hiccup sighed, nodding. "I know, I was just trying to save my skin, since _someone_ didn't feel like helping," he added with a glare towards Gobber, who just hummed obliviously. "I didn't mean to come off as skilled or anything. I honestly thought that winning without using violence would've made you guys hate me more and nothing else."

"Eh, the jealousy was there, I'll admit," Snotlout replied with a little sigh. "But honestly that was too cool. And besides, you never even used your axe, while to be honest, I do prefer solving problems with my mace. Hehehe!"

"And that's why you and your mace have the same intelligence," Astrid snorted sarcastically, drawing a confused expression from the boy as he tried to figure out how she had insulted him. He knew it was an insult though, she basically never praised anyone, much less him.

**"Start talking." Obediently, Hiccup does, though it's only gibberish and broken 'I's. "Are you training with someone?"**

"Yes! With me!" Toothless exclaimed, slightly amused by Hiccup's panic beside him, much less so by the actual fear of the one onscreen. "Got a problem with that?"

Astrid grumbled, but she didn't say anything. Kinda hard when the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself is glaring at you.

**"I- Training, I-"**

**"It better not involve this!" Astrid adds with a glare, grabbing him by his harness.**

**"I know, this looks really bad, but I-"**

**A rustle is heard and Astrid gasps, grabbing him by the scruff of his clothes and throwing him on the ground before stepping on him. To his credit, he doesn't even yelp. After a few seconds, she gains a frown, but she doesn't see anything.**

And suddenly Astrid began to fear for her future self, having forgotten there was a very overprotective Night Fury in the same cove as them.

Toothless grinned. It was time to make his entrance!

**"You're right, you're right!" Laughing nervously, Hiccup hurries after her to try and stop her from investigating and getting herself blasted to oblivion. "I'm through the lies. I've been making… outfits!"**

Everyone just looked at Hiccup, who blushed. "Fine, I'm not a good liar, okay?!"

"You're worse than 'not good' Hiccup, that was positively cringe-worthy!" Toothless exclaimed, shocked by his brother's inability to do something as simple as lying.

**"So, you got me, it's time everyone knew." Seeing as his words are having literally no effect, he grabs her hand and puts it on the front of his harness, motioning for her to haul him away. "Drag me back, go ahead, here we go- Augh! Why would you do that?!"**

**She twists his hand back and drops him on the ground before kicking him, making him fall down flat. "That's for the lies," Astrid seethes. Does that mean she believed him when he said he was making outfits? Then she bounces her axe's handle off of his body. He gives another pained yelp. "And ****_that's_****, for everything else."**

Hiccup flinched, but he let out a relieved sigh. "Well, at least it didn't go as bad as I thought it would."

"You just got your wrist strained, a kick in the chest and the butt of an axe on your stomach. And you call that good?" Meatlug exclaimed, worried.

"Well, she could've used the other end of the axe, like she usually does with Snotlout. She could've gone on for _much_ longer." Hiccup shrugged. Sure those hits probably hurt, but physical pain was quick to fade anyway. "She could've found out about Toothless, and Toothless himself could've shown himself just because he was angry."

"There's still time for that~" Ruffnut sang in delight, wanting to see some more mayhem.

**An angry growl is heard in the cove, together with Hiccup's defeated "Oh man…"**

"You were saying?" Ruffnut grinned.

Hiccup paled. "Oh no… oh no nonono! Toothless is going to _kill_ Astrid! He's _very_ protective of me!"

"As I should be, as the older brother. Or at least the biggest one," Toothless huffed, feeling conflicted towards the blonde girl. On one hand, the one beside him had changed and hadn't hurt Hiccup yet. On the other, she looked really mean on the screen, and in need of a good lesson taught with some plasma blasts.

Astrid, on her part, was quite terrified. How could she not? She was facing the nightmare of all Vikings! And she'd just pissed him off by hurting the only human he cared for!

She _really_ needed to get a hold of her anger issues. Maybe if she changed her dream of becoming a Shield Maiden, now that the war was officially over, she'd find it easier to accept changes. And she imagined that now that the dragons were their friends and Hiccup was the only dragon rider in Berk, she'd find herself surpassed a lot of times if she wanted to be a rider too. Which she _totally_ wanted.

Because eventually, she'd gotten angry simply because her life-long dream of becoming the best warrior of Berk, the one thing she ever thought of, was being stomped over by a hiccup using his mind instead of his body to fight.

Yeah, she really needed to watch her anger sometimes.

**Astrid looks up and sees Toothless, glaring at her from the shadowed part of the cove. Her eyes get huge in fright and she pushes Hiccup to the ground. "Get down!" she exclaims, trying to keep him from harm.**

**The Night Fury roars and charges at her, jumping over the rocks. Astrid rolls off of the boy and grabs her axe, standing up, fearful but determined. "Run, run!"**

Hiccup was left speechless. Astrid had just basically said with her actions that she'd die for him. She hated him, and yet she was willing to risk her life for him. He couldn't help it. Warmth expanded in his chest and a smile crept up on his face. It seemed that the old Astrid, the one he had a _huge_ crush on, wasn't dead after all. Just buried underneath so much anger and training she was hard to see.

Astrid felt slightly conflicted. On one hand, she obviously feared for her life. The dragon was very much angry and very much capable of firing at her. On the other hand, her future self didn't know Hiccup wouldn't be harmed, and that hiding behind him would actually save her life. She felt a bit of pride in knowing that no matter how angry she was, she wouldn't let it cloud her mind, and that she would always try to save someone when they needed her.

Snotlout was pouting. Astrid wouldn't have saved _him_, had he been in Hiccup's place!

Unbeknownst to him, she actually would've, but he would learn that three years later, while he was tied upside-down in a cave on Wingmaiden Island.

As scared as they were for their daughters, Astrid's parents both felt proud of their little girl.

**Toothless jumps on her, trying to crush her, but Hiccup tackles her out of the way and rips the axe from her hands, tossing it away. "No, no, no!" he calls out to his dragon, trying to calm down the snarling Night Fury. "It's okay, it's okay!"**

**Toothless rampages a little but then settles for just glaring and snarling at Astrid, who is looking at him in fear and at Hiccup in shock and awe.**

Everyone was shocked too. Friends or not, calming down a Night Fury wasn't something anyone ever managed. Most dragons didn't even survive after trying. No human tried before.

And yet, Hiccup managed without many problems.

Snotlout whipped out a notepad from somewhere and began to make a list. _'Why do I hate Hiccup. Point 0: he's a runt. Point 1: his hair isn't greasy. Point 2: he's smart. Point 3: he's brave. Point 4: Astrid probably likes him. Point 5: Astrid definitely likes him. Point 6: he rides a dragon. Point 7: he rides a Night Fury. Point 8: he's going to end the Viking-Dragon war. Point 9: he can calm down a freaking raging NIGHT FURY!'_

He noted down the ninth point before humming. He would need more notes, which meant it was back to studying and analysing the reasons why he disliked Hiccup so much. All of it could be traced back to envy right now. Only Point 0 could be just plain dislike speaking.

**"She's a friend." That seems to do the trick, and Toothless drops back on all fours, though still growling. Hiccup tries to smile to disrupt the tension in the air. "You just scared him," he tells her.**

**"I scared ****_him_****?!" Astrid exclaims before realizing what he just said. Eyes still wide in fright, she asks, "Who, is him?"**

**"Astrid, Toothless." He introduces them with a smile before turning to Toothless with a frown of warning. "Toothless… Astrid." The Night Fury snarls savagely, showcasing his teeth.**

"Great way to meet the family guys," Barf snickered, making Astrid gain a tint of pink in her cheeks in embarrassment.

"Next up is the guy who you called a half-troll," Belch added before he and Barf banged heads together in congratulations for the well-done teasing. Poor, simple souls.

**Astrid looks at him, shaking her head ever so slightly, not knowing what the hell is going on. Then as soon as she realizes she's safe, she turns and runs out of the cove.**

**Toothless stops growling as he watches her disappear with a flat look. Beside him, Hiccup is mirroring his expression, for a different reason. "Ta-da-da, we're dead."**

**The Night Fury shrugs and starts to walk away. The boy turns around. "Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa! Where do you think you're going?"**

Astrid shrank. "Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"

"What do you mean?" Hiccup asked, frowning.

"Khor said you would end the war in peace. To achieve peace, you must convince the Berkians, so you must remain on Berk. If you remain and I'm going to tell the Chief about you and your dragon… How are you going to prevent that from happening?"

"What do you- Whoa whoa whoa, let's not be too hasty, I would never hurt you just to shut you up!" Hiccup exclaimed as he realized what she meant.

"Not even to keep your dragon safe?"

Hiccup opened his mouth before wincing and looking away. "I… I would find another way…"

Astrid shook her head with a shaky sigh. "Hiccup, you were out of 'other ways'. You were about to leave Berk itself!"

"Yeah, then why should I care about Berk hating me if I'm away? Not like they would believe you anyway! There must be something _else_ I could do…" Hiccup then lit up ever so slightly. "There _is_ something else I could do… let's just hope the future me thinks of it too…" Then, in a whisper, he adds, "And let's hope the future you can listen…"

**The scene cuts to Astrid running through the forest. She looks back, panting, to make sure she isn't followed, before leaping over a large tree trunk fallen in the path. She doesn't come back down and remains in the air as a large black paw snatches her from mid-air, making her cry out. "Aaaahh! Oh, great Odin's ghost! Oh, this is it! AAAAAAAHHHHHH!" She then proceeds to scream as loudly as she can as the Night Fury hauls them off the ground and over the trees.**

Astrid stared at the screen, shocked and fearful. _'Please let it not be death by falling. Please, Odin, Thor, anyone! If I have to die, please let me die fighting, or at least incinerated!'_

Hiccup bit his lip. The retrieval was the easy part. Now he had to try and convince Astrid not to blab about him to his father or anyone in the village. That was the hard part, especially after such a retrieval.

**She keeps up the scream as she's carried through the air. She is cut off when the Night Fury drops her on the highest branch of a tree a bit away from the others, a very tall pine. Then the dragon himself lands, bending the tree under his weight and making her dangle from almost two hundred feet off the ground, over a cliff. She looks up and sees Hiccup sitting on the saddle. "Hiccup!" she calls out, kicking the air angrily. "Get me down from here!"**

**"You have to give me a chance to explain," Hiccup replies.**

**"I am not listening to ****_anything_**** you have to say!" she bites back, still furious, trying to make her way to the main body of the pine. Toothless is still glaring at her.**

Oh, so that was why he'd done that. He was going to try and explain things to her. Astrid forced herself to release a sigh, letting her fear go with it. It was Hiccup. Sure, Toothless by himself would've probably killed her several times already, and stomped on the ashes, but as long as Hiccup was there to calm him down he wouldn't harm her.

_'Huh. Saved by Hiccup. Never thought I'd see the day…'_

Meanwhile, Hiccup was the one starting to worry. His future self _obviously_ wouldn't let anything happen to Astrid if he could prevent it, but would Astrid listen?

The rest of the people, having an idea what was going on, kept quiet. True, Astrid had been the first to change her mind, but in the future she hadn't – she actually hated him the most. They were curious -and hopeful- to see what would happen next.

**The screen cut off.**

"NOOOO!" everyone chorused. Khor laughed and the screen lit up again, causing people to thorw him a few glares.

**"Then I won't speak," Hiccup pleads to her, showing his hands in the universal gesture of 'I'm not going to hurt you'. "Just let me ****_show_**** you." She glances down at the ****_other_**** choice she has, the hundreds-foot-fall, and back at him. "Please, Astrid."**

**With a grunt, she pulls herself up. Blowing her hair out of her face, she puts a hand on Toothless's saddle, making him growl unhappily.**

**Hiccup offers her a hand, but she swats it away. She then hops on behind Hiccup, keeping her arms up so to touch dragon and boy as little as possible. Toothless keeps an eye on her until she's settled before turning forwards.**

**"Now get me down," she orders as soon as she's on.**

**"Toothless, down." Hiccup pats the side of his head to calm him down. "Gently."**

"Why do I have the feeling that 'gently' was really important?" Tuffnut wondered out loud.

"Probably because T would've liked to just drop Astrid since the start and he's not happy about having to lug her around just because H said so," Ruffnut grinned at her brother and the two high-fived with a cackle.

**Seen from below, Toothless's wings spread. "See?" Hiccup says. "Nothing to be afraid of."**

**Toothless is not amused.**

**The dragon launches into the sky at rocket speed, making both his riders scream – one in fear, the other in shock. Hiccup's scream soon ceases as Astrid almost falls off the saddle, but manages to grab him by the shoulders and holds onto him as tightly as she humanly can to stop herself from falling. "Toothless! What is wrong with you! Bad dragon!" He is reminded of Astrid when she accidentally paws at his face, trying to find some hold. He chuckles awkwardly, trying to reassure her. "He's not usually like this…"**

**Now Toothless is amused.**

**Then he dives down riders-first. "Oh no…" he mutters while Astrid screams again.**

Astrid covered her face. _'I knew it. Death by falling.'_

Hiccup was torn between amusement at seeing Astrid's panic and worrying for her. As funny as it might've been, for her it must be a terrifying experience. He placed a hand on her shoulder, making her peek from between her fingers before she returned to covering her face. Not knowing what to say, he just passed an arm around her shoulders in a show of comfort… somewhat.

Almost everyone else had started laughing by then, worry temporarily forgotten.

**The dragon dips into the water three times. "Toothless, what are you doing, we need her to like us!" Hiccup reminds him, but the dragon isn't listening.**

Astrid peeked from her fingers again.

**They shoot up again and in a second they are above the clouds.**

Only to shut her eyes tightly immediately after.

**The Night Fury begins to spin in mid-air before falling freely, still spinning like mad. "And now, the spinning," Hiccup comments, unimpressed. "Thank you for nothing, you useless reptile."**

Toothless recoiled as if hurt. "Useless reptile?! And here I'm helping you get the girl you like!"

"How is that helping me?!"

"She needs to learn hurting you isn't an option."

The rest of the Berkians and the Dragons are all laughing by now, as it is clear the Night Fury doesn't really want to hurt the girl, just scare her to death.

**"Okay! I'm sorry! I'm sorry." Astrid buries her face into Hiccup's back, trying to stop looking at how high up they are, and what the dragon is doing. She's too afraid to even keep her eyes open by now. "Just get me off of this thing," she pleads shakily.**

Hiccup grimaced. That had been overly harsh, but maybe it would be easier to convince her not to tell the Chief if they got rid of her anger. "Astrid, I think you can look."

Astrid hesitantly peeked from her hands.

**Toothless abruptly stops spinning and opens his wings, earning a startled cry from the terrified girl. Then he is shown flying towards the sunset, as if he'd never pulled any stunt at all.**

**Romantic music begins to play as the dragon flies further up, into the now-pink clouds.**

**Astrid opens her eyes, still panting from the fear, and is awed by what she sees. They are surrounded by clouds, and it looks unreal, so different from the harsh world she's always known.**

**As Hiccup watches her, she untangles her legs from his waist and then slowly reaches up with a hand, and then two, to try and touch the clouds. She smiles an awe-filled smile, perhaps her very first sincere smile in years, as her hands go through it.**

The girl's hands fell away from her face as she took in the sight before her. It was marvellous. Even watching from there, it felt like all her worries just slipped away, like she could just stay there forever and never get tired of it. Like she'd never really lived her life up until then.

How had she ever been able to live without that in her life?

She smiled and leaned her head on Hiccup's shoulder, ignoring the little awkwardness due to their height difference. Now she could say for certain that she liked Hiccup. If everything else hadn't been enough, that was. He'd shown her that world – how would she ever be able to repay him?

Hiccup smiled as well, though he was a bit startled when Astrid leaned onto him, but not unpleasantly so. _Definitely_ not unpleasantly so. Warmth filled his chest again, and he found a dumb smile making his way to his face. If Toothless's expression was anything to go by, he had certainly noticed and was also very amused by it.

**The two fly up and around, making a full circle before flying through the clouds and out from the top, with a full view of the night sky as the clouds underneath turn white and light blue. Astrid watches in wonder as the Aurora Borealis tints the sky green and blue and purple, putting a hand on Hiccup's side, something the boy doesn't fail to notice.**

People would've probably teased them about it, but most were still starstruck.

**The two fly over the end of the clouds, and it is now night. Berk can be seen, tiny and lit by fires in the torches, so small and insignificant in the immensity of the sky. Astrid awes at this new view of her home, and Toothless glances back at her with a smile of his own.**

**Having seemingly changed her mind, she wraps her hand around Hiccup's waist and leans her chin on his shoulder, closing her eyes for a moment.**

**They fly grazing the water and between the giant Viking statues jutting out of the sea, before moving up, over the mountain, and back in the sky.**

**Astrid looks around, still in wonder. "Alright, I admit it. This is pretty cool. It's… amazing." Then, as an afterthought, she looks down at Toothless and pats the side of his head. "He's amazing."**

"Indeed…" Astrid smiled. Now she knew what she and Hiccup would be doing as soon as they went back. First, moonlight flight. And second, getting her a dragon of her own. Maybe a Nadder, since they were pretty fast – someone would still need to keep an eye on Hiccup, and she might've as well be that someone.

However, she frowned when she realized something.

It wasn't something she would've normally realized, but the view she'd just gotten had perhaps inspired her.

Berk's colours were harsh, dull and gloomy. It had always been like that, and that 'movie' thing had just hammered that point home. Whenever Berk was shown, it was either dark and gloomy, or grey and lifeless in the Arena, even during daytime. But whenever Hiccup was with his dragon, even the grey of the cove's walls seemed livelier. There were more colours, and they were _alight_. And the sky… gods, the sky… she'd never thought anything could be so bright, so empty yet full of life and light, so wonderful.

Even herself was different. She looked brighter, livelier, maybe softer, as opposite to the scowling, harsh person she was just ten minutes ago, when Hiccup had just been chosen in the Kill Ring. Maybe the narrator hadn't been wrong in pointing out all those scowls of hers – it had helped making her realize just how little she actually liked living on _that_ Berk. And how much she loved being with Hiccup… in the sky! With Hiccup in the sky! She quickly corrected herself.

**"So what now?" she asks as the three of them fly into a bank of fog. The music finally stops, and Hiccup sighs. "Hiccup, your final exam is ****_tomorrow_****. You know you're gonna have to kill a-" She cuts herself off. As nice as Toothless is to her now, maybe mentioning killing one of his species wouldn't be appreciated. She pulls Hiccup close and whispers the rest into his ear, "-kill a dragon."**

**"Don't remind me…"**

**A low warbling sound is heard, and Toothless's pupils narrows.**

"Uh-oh…" Hiccup bit his lip. "He only ever does that when he's angry… I think he heard you…"

"No, he didn't," Stormfly replied grimly. "It's something far, far worse."

"What could be worse than that?" asked Gobber.

"He heard our Queen's call," Hookfang said with a wince, and disgust mixed with fear in his voice. "She's a cruel monster that is as merciless to dragons as she is to humans. The Blood Tyrant."

All the dragons seemed to shudder at that name.

"That bad?" Stoick asked, and for the third time the dragons nodded.

"Worse," murmured Quickspike, the usually loud Nadder now looking almost oppressed.

The Vikings exchanged worried glances.

**The screen cuts off, for real this time.**

The dragons all sighed in relief, while the Vikings were all disappointed. Astrid especially, since she really wanted to know how their date ended.

"Dinner is served!" Khor called from the corner he secluded himself in. When people looked over, they were met with the sight of the brunette smiling at them from behind a true mountain of dirty pans and pots. He gave the dirty cooking utensils a hateful glare -one all adult Vikings understood- and gestured to the large table full of food they had never seen before. Even the bread looked different! "Enjoy, people and dragons of Berk!"

A massive stampede rushed towards the table, forgetting about what they'd just seen.

"Now, since I only cooked what I can actually cook, there is some _pasta alla carbonara_, some _pasta al ragú_, some _pasta_ with bacon and courgettes, a lot of scrambled eggs as well as sunny-side-up and omelettes. Some rice with several different cheeses, and some _zafferano_ rice. Since I know you love meat, there are lots of sausages and steaks and ribs, all grill- or oven-cooked. Vegetables are important-" He received tons of booing for that, which covered his voice as he listed the vegetables. "Fine, fine. Then some cheeses. And some _tiramisú_ dessert, very good in my opinion. Enjoy!"

And enjoy they did. Khor watched from the side, happily munching on some cheese chunks he'd kept for himself. He'd already eaten anyway.

To say the Vikings were enthusiastic would be an understatement. And even if the dragons usually only ate fish, they weren't above eating anything edible in sight. Except for vegetables. Oh well, their loss. Not like Khor liked vegetables anyway, they were just healthy.

Once they were done, every single plate had been scrubbed clean, and Khor met their full and satisfied smiles with an evil grin of his own. "And now… you wash the dishes!"

_**So sorry guys, about all this delay. To anyone who has PM'd me today, I'm outta WiFi. My twin used it all up. After the eighth time we've told him NOT to. We're gonna get an app just to keep his WiFi consume monitored. Gods, why can't he just understand he can't do everything he wants, whenever he wants, however he wants, for as long as he wants, with no regard for the rest of the family?!**_

_**Sorry, got carried away.**_

_**Anyway, hope you enjoyed! And Astrid's observation about the colours is actually true, by the way. DreamWorks is pretty good at that. I guess they aren't at the top for no reason.**_

_**Until next time,**_

_**Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh**_


	11. The Blood Tyrant

_**Hey guys, here I am, back from a cliffhanger!**_

_**Now, I want to address something I should've addressed at least a couple of viewings ago.**_

_**The teens, mainly Snotlout, and their behaviours. Point is, before the chapter 'Khor' freaked out about having Race to the Edge, I never saw anything of the series, so I didn't have a very good grasp on the characters. I made the mistake of basing them off other stories I read, and thus ended up making Snotlout (and the twins to some extent) far more vicious than he (they) actually is (are).**_

_**I apologize for that and I intend to fix that. I know ignorance is not an excuse, but I honestly thought that the teens had changed more between HTTYD1 and HTTYD2, instead of just not being portrayed enough in the first movie.**_

_**Other than that enjoy this new chapter!**_

One huge dishwashing session later, the Vikings returned grumpily to where they were sitting earlier… and found themselves surprised.

"Uhhh… I have a small, scratch that, _tiny_ question," Hiccup spoke up. Khor looked up from the book he was reading with a small hum of acknowledgement. "What are those?"

Khor looked at him, then moved his gaze to the rows upon rows of couches and sofas and mattresses strewn about in the room. He stared at them for a long time, as if trying to remember their purpose, before oohing, snapping his fingers in realization and nodding with a smile. "Oh, yes, those. Well, I just thought the big bad Vikings could be big and bad some other time, and for now enjoy instead the comfort of some… well, comfortable… seats. Same goes for the dragons. Sofas are for those who can sit together without killing each other, couches are for everyone else, mattresses are for dragons."

Nobody missed the fact there were a lot more couches than sofas. The problem especially laid in the fact none of them even actually knew what a sofa or a mattress was. And their couches were made of wood, and thus just chairs with armrests. So they were more than a bit wary of the strange furniture appeared out of nowhere.

"Now, c'mon, sit. Don't you wanna see what's next?"

Suddenly remembering what was happening in the movie, everyone jumped and nodded excitedly. Of course they were eager!

The dragons, however, were less than thrilled. They all knew what was about to happen – the Night Fury would be drawn in by the Queen's call, and the two humans would die.

The dragons weren't being pessimistic either – it was simply the truth. The Night Fury hadn't been able to shake off the Queen's influence for years. Only the prolonged stay on Berk, away from all other dragons and with only a sharp-witted Viking to keep him company, had allowed him to break free – and even then, it wasn't a real freedom, more of a temporary break.

Then they shook themselves – the Night Fury had gotten weeks of rest. Perhaps he would just turn around and go back instead of taking the two Viking hatchlings right to the Nest and into the waiting jaws of the Blood Tyrant.

Astrid, to be honest, just wanted to see how her first date would end- she meant her first flight! First flight!

**Toothless looks around, trying to locate a sound only he can hear. Astrid yelps when he suddenly dives into a fog bank underneath.**

"What the Thor-" Hiccup didn't finish the sentence, but everyone knew what he meant. Why would Toothless just up and dive?

Or well, just down and dive…

The dragons cringed and exchanged worried glances. Maybe the Night Fury would still be able to turn away, right? Hope was always the last to die, after all.

**"Toothless, what's happening?" Hiccup asks, as if he can actually answers that. The dragon -and thus the two riders- disappear into the fog bank.**

"I gotta say, for someone who's been flying for a few days at most, you're holding on well," Stormfly commented, vaguely impressed by the boy's riding skills.

"Uhh… thanks? I mean, I guess it depends if it was objective or relative but-"

"Oh just take the compliment, not like you're gonna get a lot of those once I get my own dragon." Snotlout laughed and flexed his arms. "Oh yeah, baby! Snotlout Jorgenson ain't second to no one!"

Hiccup rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure 'Lout."

Astrid snorted. "I'd be surprised if he doesn't end up on fire before the first week is over."

Hiccup shrugged in vague agreement. Honestly, Snotlout and his ego would probably get on any dragon's nerves, so that outcome was pretty much guaranteed. Or maybe having a dragon would magically make Snotlout a better person and he would stop belittling others and glorifying himself…

Yeah, sure. Him marrying Astrid was more probable than that.

Khor, off to the side, stealthily hanged himself to stop the roaring laughter that was building up in his throat. Honestly, at the start of the first movie, it did look unlikely for Snotlout to ever grow into a person Khor could actually call admirable in some cases, but he really got better and eventually actually became a very interesting character, way more than most others and ranking third favourite human in his opinion, despite all his faults and flaws. As for Hiccstrid's future… well, Zephyr and Nuffink, that's all he would say. Fortunately no one noticed the hanged man in the shadows of the room, and he soon managed to get his laughter under control.

**"Whoa, what is it?" The Night Fury stabilizes slightly inside the fog bank. Or at least, until a Monstrous Nightmare carrying a giant fish in its claws shows up from nowhere, headed in the same direction, and the Night Fury has to move to the left to avoid it.**

Magmascale winced as he recognized himself. "Not good…" he whimpered.

Everyone else gasped at the sudden appearance of the dragon. Hiccup whimpered too. He had an inkling where they were going, and he didn't like it. At all. In fact, he'd be very happy if he could avoid going there for the rest of his life. Sure, dragons were awesome, but if what the dragons kept saying was true, going to the Nest was suicide. Especially with that 'Blood Tyrant' or whatever.

**"Get down!" Hiccup orders as he and Astrid, obviously, try to flatten themselves against Toothless's back as much as they can.**

**The Night Fury swerves to the left but then a Deadly Nadder appears from the fog from their left, cutting off their escape route. The two of them look around, scared, as more and more dragons of all kinds start to appear, all of them carrying their prey.**

"Oh my Thor…" Tuffnut breathed, horrified.

"Is it just me, or does it look like they're going to the Nest?" Ruffnut asked out loud, for once actually wishing to be just called stupid.

Fishlegs was beyond help. He had frozen up, whimpering and wide-eyed as he stared at the screen.

Stoick, who too had figured it out, was panicking. His son was in there! And yeah, Astrid and Toothless too but he felt he could be excused for worrying mainly about his son.

Toothless's ear fins dropped as he whined.

**"What's going on?!" Astrid asks in a whisper, as if Hiccup could do anything but guess.**

**"I don't know. Toothless, you gotta get us out of here, bud" he replies, placing a hand on Toothless's head, which he shakes off.**

Toothless whines' got louder. "I'm so sorry about that, Hiccup," he apologized. "The Queen's call is very strong…"

Hiccup grimaced. "Oh…"

**Hiccup grimaces as he examines a large Nightmare flying nearby, with a sheep in its claws. "It… looks like they're hauling in their kill…"**

**"Uh, what does that make us?" Astrid asks, sounding scared. Understandably since she has been taught her whole life that dragons are evil monsters, and she's now surrounded by them.**

Astrid nodded, fully understanding her future self. She'd be terrified too. No, scratch that, she _was_ terrified. Because that was the future and everyone knew the future was decided by the Gods and couldn't be changed.

"Hey, wait a second, I just had a thought," Tuffnut spoke up, frowning.

"Tuff, not now," she snapped, only partly because of him.

"No, seriously…"

"Tuff!"

He groaned and just sat back down. Why did no one ever listened to him? Yeah, he knew he was an idiot and he was proud of that, but that didn't mean his opinion didn't matter! Nor did it mean he couldn't have thoughts from time to time! In fact, it was _because_ he was an idiot that his ideas should always be listened to, because he could point out things the others would take as obvious and not notice!

Fortunately for everyone, Snotlout of all people actually followed his train of thoughts. "Hey guys, wait a second, didn't Kyoresiv-something tell us that we'd see the end of the war and that Hiccup would end it?"

"It's Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh, but you're right, he did say that!" exclaimed Fishlegs, not looking braindead any longer. He still looked fearful, but at least he could get words out now. "That means Hiccup, Astrid and Toothless are gonna be alright!"

"Well, what tells you they ain't gonna be killed? Kor never told us which side would win – what if the war ends with us losing?" Spitelout spoke up, saying what was on everyone's mind.

"No, Khor said it would end in a way none of us would've predicted, both us and the dragons," Hiccup spoke up. "I grew up knowing that one day Berk might be wiped off the map, and I'm sure the dragons knew that too. And I grew up hearing my dad talk about how the war would end in our favour. If either side wins, then we already predicted it."

"So the only way is for neither side to win. A tie no one could've predicted," Astrid continued, eyes brightening when she realized something. "Or maybe for _both_ sides to win! What if Hiccup actually manages to bring the two sides together?!"

Hiccup looked shocked, as if he'd never thought it could actually end that way. "But… in that future, you're the only one who knows…"

"Yes, but there are no other ways for this war to end in an unforeseen way. Plus, Khor did say you were the hero of the story, so obviously it must be something _you_ could've done, or would've done," Fishlegs replied wisely. "So I guess you and Astrid are in no real danger now." He sighed in relief. "That's very reassuring…"

"That's very boring!" exclaimed Snotlout, with his usual lack of tact. "Can we just watch the future?"

Shaking their heads at the boy's tactlessness, everyone returned to watch the future.

**The two of them then see a Zippleback eyeing them both.**

Grass and Wood tried to disappear while most Vikings -and to be honest, most Dragons too- looked their way. Or more like, _glowered_ their way. They whimpered out an apology.

**The dragons start to dive. Astrid and Hiccup both wince when Toothless dives down too. The dragons slalom through the sea stacks in the fog as an ominous music builds up. Toothless is in line with a few other dragons as they fly close to the water.**

**Hiccup narrows his eyes, trying to spot what's ahead of them. He doesn't have to wait long, as a fiery volcano with rivers of red magma running down its sides appears from the fog as they duck under a sea stack. Hiccup frowns as he starts to realize what's going on.**

"Come on, they're gonna survive, they're gonna survive," Skyblaze kept repeating to himself, the usually proud Nadder now basically cowering behind Stormfly, who sent him a pointed look before returning her worried gaze to the screen.

She'd never admit it out loud, but if the Night Fury was really as nimble and quick as the screen depicted him to be, then she might've _finally_ found someone who could actually give her a challenge, perhaps even beat her. She'd prefer not to lose her flying rival before she could even race him once.

Of course she was also worried because, well, the Nest was a dangerous place, but as the fat Viking hatchling had said, there should've been no reason to worry.

**Toothless and the other dragons fly into a crevice in the side of the volcano while the two riders scream in surprise and fear. The crevice turns out to be a tunnel that leads to the burning heart of the volcano, a massive lava pit filled with magmatic vapours.**

**Hundreds upon hundreds of dragons reside within, landing on large pillars of rock jutting out of the fog-like smoke beneath.**

**Toothless blinks as he looks down at the fiery pit, before looking around for a place to land. On his back, a wide-eyed, terrified Astrid hides behind and holds on for dear life to an equally wide-eyed Hiccup, who is looking around as realization of where exactly they are finally settles in. "What my dad wouldn't give to find this."**

Stoick grimaced. Indeed, there was very little he wouldn't do to find the Nest. He was ready to lead his own men to their fiery deaths if it meant getting a shot at finding the Nest. They had never found it, but he knew just how far he was willing to go.

Hiccup silently agreed with himself, and so did most of the other Vikings in the room. All of them, at one point of another, had considered Stoick to be completely and irrationally obsessed with the Dragons' Nest, not that they had ever mustered the courage to say that to his face. Of course he'd do anything to find it. And he would give even more to destroy it… or at least he used to. Now that the village screw-up had found another way, perhaps it wouldn't be necessary to wake up to ashes and scream any longer.

**The dragons throw all their catch into the pit, taking none of themselves, before landing on the ledges of the rock pillars. Toothless instead departs from the group and flies to a lonely ledge hidden from view, one with no other dragon on it, where he lands with a skid, making his riders yelp slightly.**

**"Oh, it's satisfying to know that all of our food has been dumped down a hole," Hiccup remarks to Astrid, hiding his fear with a thick and healthy dose of sarcasm.**

**The dragons are shown to be still throwing food into the pit.**

**"They're not eating any of it…" Astrid comments, surprised by that.**

"Why are they not eating any of it?" Astrid asked, basically at the same time as her future self, before turning to the dragons. "Why aren't you eating that?"

The dragons sighed and shook their heads. Hookfang was the one to reply. "If you don't find out now, I'll explain later. Honestly, we just want to get this scene over with," he said bitterly. "Let's just say we don't _want_ to throw that food away. It'd be beyond stupid to risk our lives against you Vikings to get it, and then waste it."

"That's true, and that's one of the reasons Vikings always believed dragons to be evil monsters!" Fishlegs blushed when everyone turned to him. "S-Sorry… It's just that even if dragons were no more than simple animals, they would still find it much easier to just go fishing instead of raiding a village full of warriors and traps and catapults. They'd find an easier way to hunt. The only explanations our ancestors could come up with was that dragons were evil and simply wanted to harm Berk by depriving it of its food."

Everyone looked at him, shocked he had such knowledge.

"What? It's in the Book of Dragons!"

"I read that book three times, and even backwards!" Gobber exclaimed. "And yet I never heard of anything like that!"

"Oh, it wasn't exactly written like that, I just elaborated and guessed a few parts, but it is in there, it's in several tiny notes written on the edge of the pages." Fishlegs tried to recall the actual page number but failed. "They look like decorations but they're actually words all squashed together!"

Once again, everyone was shocked by the living, walking, talking encyclopedia.

**A drowsy Gronckle appears and unsteadily flies towards the foggy pit. The dragon hovers in mid-air before regurgitating a small fish, that falls into the pit. Then, it starts to scratch itself with its hind leg.**

"Hey, that's me!" cheered Sandstone, the Gronckle who ate Gobber's leg.

**A distant roar rings out and the Gronckle is suddenly alarmed. It tries to fly away but before it can move more than two metres, a gargantuan dragon's head shoots out of the smoke and closes its jaws around the Gronckle, swallowing it whole as it slowly sinks back down in the fog.**

Sandstone crapped himself and fainted.

The dragons whimpered and recoiled at the sight of the horrible monster that had enslaved them and then used them to raid the Vikings for so long. Partly out of disgust and hatred, partly out of horror, all of them glared at the Blood Tyrant, but none said a word. What was there to say? It had been four hundred years and countless of dragon generations had been born and lived under the Queen's oppression – they all knew there was nothing that could be said or done.

The same couldn't be said for the Vikings, though.

As soon as the head appeared, Fishlegs had straight-out fainted, Snotlout had screamed and tried to hold onto Astrid for comfort, who just pushed him away since she and Hiccup were already holding each other, quite terrified one might add. The twins both awed at the Queen and grinned, but that was fairly normal. They had acknowledged that the Queen was very bad news, they just didn't care enough to bring themselves to be scared.

Stoick just about had a heart attack. He was suddenly _very_ glad he'd never found the Nest. He didn't know the full size of that thing, but the head was enough – just the head was bigger than the biggest Monstrous Nightmare he'd ever seen, and he'd seen a Titanwing! He didn't want to imagine having to fight that thing, even with the entire village fighting alongside him. It would simply be a one-sided slaughter. That was probably why the Queen had never directly gone to Berk – it was quite simply so big it would've destroyed the entirety of Berk instead of just raiding it!

He was also quite frankly terrified for Hiccup, in the way only a father seeing his son about to die could be. Somewhere in a far, far corner of his mind, he also registered a vague worry for Astrid and Toothless as well, but if he had to be honest, it was _really_ tiny and in a _really_ far corner of his mind.

Beside him, Gobber was pretty much in the same boat, only with added underwear problems. He would seriously need a change of undies as soon as he could. In his defence, though, that thing was gigantic! He'd fought a lot of dragons, from giant savage Scauldrons with razor-sharp teeth to that blasted Boneknapper that kept bugging him wherever he went, but the Queen of Dragon eclipsed all of them.

The rest of the Vikings more or less shared their fears, though directed at different people. Some were worried about the teens, some about themselves. Astrid's parents were of course worried about her, because even though they knew their daughter was strong, there was a difference between strong and invincible.

Toothless whimpered at seeing the Queen, mentally screaming at himself for bringing Hiccup there. Astrid, he could care less, _especially_ the one onscreen, with how much she'd hurt his brother-in-flight. The one beside him, eh, she'd proved to be a good mate for his rider. He'd worry about playing matchmaker later.

For now he was too busy panicking about having brought his _human_ friend in the _Dragons' Nest_, which more or less spelled certain doom for both his riders.

Overall, no one managed to get a single word out – they were too shocked, or in the dragons' case too sadly resigned to their fate.

**Hiccup and Astrid both take a sharp breath as they see the monstrous dragon's head. "What. Is. That?" Astrid asks, shocked.**

**All the other dragons cower and hide away in their nests in the stone columns as the gargantuan head sinks back in the mist filling the crater.**

**Hiccup and Astrid both lean back, horrified, before the giant head resurfaces, growling.**

**Hiccup leans down to whisper at his dragon. "Alright bud, we gotta get out of here." The monster in the volcano starts to sniff the air, finding their smell, human smell, and pinpointing their location. "Now!" commands Hiccup, convincing Toothless to take flight.**

**And just in the nick of time too, as the monster in the Nest lunges and closes its jaws on the spot they were in a mere second prior.**

A lot of Vikings and Dragons almost fainted at how close the call was, but most dragons were just too gobsmacked to pay attention to that. In fact, a lot of them turned to look incredulously at Hiccup as soon as the screen showed that the Night Fury had been able to dodge the bite.

"H-How?!" shouted Magmascale, the Nightmare having an almost comical wide-eyed disbelief painted all over his snout.

"That shouldn't even be possible!" agreed Razorsharp, a female Deadly Nadder who hadn't spoken a single word up until then. "The Night Fury was controlled up until a second ago!"

"W-Wait wait wait! W-What do you mean co-controlled?!" Hiccup exclaimed, not having expected that particular word to be thrown around in such a conversation. "Is that what you meant when you said you wouldn't throw food in that pit if it was up to you?! Are-are you forced to raid us because of that- that thing?!"

Meatlug sighed before she took over the explanation, being the more mature of the group. "Yes, the Blood Tyrant can control us with her mind. Her influence is so great that we can't even flee the Nest, even though none of us would've ever wanted to be ruled by such a cruel Queen. Even the Night Fury hasn't been able to escape her influence…" She seemed to brighten up though. "Not until now, at least!"

"Is-is that why you all look so- so… upset?"

"You have no idea what that means, do you?" Hookfang commented, shaking his head. "If the Night Fury managed to break the Queen's influence, then he'll be able to escape. If all dragons could break free, we could all leave the Nest. But no one's ever left because no one's ever managed to free themselves."

Toothless shook his head. "But that's impossible! I've never managed to break free before, so what was different this time around?"

"Well… you had Hiccup with you."

Everyone turned to look at Tuffnut, who just shrugged. "What? That's the truth. Oh, and I guess Astrid but he doesn't seem to like her very much. So I guess it's because of old H."

"Old H?" repeated the boy.

"Would you prefer Hiccy?"

"What?! No!"

"That's… that should be impossible!" Toothless spoke up, silencing the two teens arguing about Hiccup's nickname. "Humans don't have any kind of control over dragons. But…" He frowned, a hard feat for someone whose forehead didn't even exist, and who had no eyebrows. "But there's no other explanation."

"Is the Viking boy some kind of Alpha?" wondered Belch.

"Oh come on, Hiccup, the Alpha? If anything _I'd_ be the Alpha, heh," gloated Snotlout, unaware that he was just looking like a complete moron.

"Shut up Snotlout!" said everyone, leaving him to sulk.

"Maybe not an Alpha, but he certainly has _something_ special," Stormfly remarked.

"Wh-what?!" exclaimed Hiccup, confused as all hell. "Wha-what do you mean?! I'm- I'm _me_, I'm just a hiccup, how's that being special?"

"I guess you're a hiccup with some odd abilities," shrugged the Nadder, not really seeing his point. "After all, you did recreate an artificial dragon tailfin just by observing, and you did manage to fly Toothless with no prior experience." She then noticed the look she was getting from the mentioned dragon. "Yes, I called you Toothless, so? It's growing on me."

"So, are you saying Hiccup can break this 'mind control' that big dragon has over the others," Gobber interrupted, appearing between the teens and scaring everyone of them to death. "So I guess he and the lass can get out of there safe and sound, right? Please give me a positive answer, Stoick's been crushing his chair's armrests for the past five minutes."

"Night Furies are the fastest dragons there are, so yeah, I think they're safe now," nodded Hookfang.

"Oh thank Thor," sighed Gobber, hobbling off to inform Stoick that there was nothing to worry about any more. "The old bugger will be pleased to hear that."

**Hundreds upon hundreds of dragons flee the volcano, Toothless and his riders amongst them. The Queen rises from the pit, trying to catch the escaping Night Fury, but instead nabs a Hideous Zippleback, before dragging it down, satisfied with her meal as the rest of the dragons fly out of the crater.**

Grass and Wood, the Zippleback who had eyed them while they were flying to the Nest, whimpered at seeing his future death. "I don't wanna die…" the right head began to sob as the dragon was comforted by his friends.

Khor grimaced. It was never easy to show someone their deaths. Especially if they were people (or in this case dragons) who thought the future couldn't be changed because it was set in stone.

**Scene cuts to the Cove at night, where Toothless flies around in the sky before landing while Astrid talks. "No, no, it totally makes sense, it's like a giant beehive." Toothless lands meanwhile. "They're the workers and that's their queen. It controls them."**

"Wow, you figured it out immediately!" exclaimed Hiccup, impressed. He wasn't sure he'd be able to do that in such a short time.

Astrid shrugged. "I had the whole flight back to think about it."

**She climbs off the saddle and starts to walk off. "Let's go find your dad."**

Hiccup winced. "And here I thought you didn't want to kill me and Toothless any more…"

The girl winced as well. Knowing what she now knew, that was probably not a good idea. She'd been calling her actions 'not good' a lot lately. Food for thought, she guessed. "I guess I didn't think about that, I just wanted to inform the Chief of the Nest…"

"Then let's hope Hiccup can stop you," Stoick spoke up, finally releasing the now-crushed armrests of his couch and beginning to take the splinters out of his hands. "Because I know telling me like that is _not_ going to end well. The opposite, really."

**"No! No," Hiccup jumps down as well, running after her and getting in front of her, stopping the girl. "No. Not yet. They'll… kill Toothless. No, Astrid, we gotta think this through, carefully."**

"Wow, that's a lot of 'no'," commented Tuffnut, who then received deadpans from everyone. "What? He said 'no' like a dozen times! Does the rule of double negative being positive still apply?"

Everyone just ignored the suddenly serious-looking male twin, shaking their heads. Even Hiccup, who basically never spent time with them, knew what to do when Tuff was like that. Ignore him and hope it passed quickly.

**Astrid gives the Night Fury a disbelieving glance before turning to look at the boy, who walks away from her, back to his dragon, with a thoughtful expression. She is shocked. As she talks, she spreads her arms several times to convey her incredulity. "Hiccup, we just discovered the ****_Dragons' Nest_****. The thing we've been after ever since Vikings first sailed here! And you want to keep it a secret?" Her voice raises as she scoffs, still in disbelief. "To protect your pet dragon? Are you serious?!"**

"Would it be rude if I said yes?" No guesses who that was.

**Hiccup turns around, his expression showing that yes, he was very much serious as he frowned at her. "Yes."**

"Yeah, probably rude, but I agree with my fu-ouch!" Hiccup glared at Snotlout as he got up after being pushed down. "What's wrong with you?!"

"I wanna watch the future, idiot!" replied the stocky boy, and for once Toothless actually agreed. He loved Hiccup's sarcasm, he loved Hiccup in general, but the future was getting to its focal point and he really wanted to see how it went.

**Astrid's angry disbelief turns into surprised disbelief, facial features relaxing from a scowl to surprise.**

**Hiccup sees the change and turns away, knowing he changed her mind.**

**As predicted, she relents. "Okay… Then what do we do?"**

"Whoa, Astrid giving up so easily?" Ruffnut breathed out in awe. "Are we sure _that's_ not Hiccup's secret power?"

"What?! Why does he get to have a secret power, I want to have a secret power!" complained Tuffnut, punching his sister. "He gets all the cool stuff. A dragon, superpowers, a girlfriend. Instead I'm stuck with you as a sister."

Ruffnut of course saw it fit to reply to the offence with offence of her own and punched her brother back, who got dazed by the hit. Astrid shook her head at the two always fighting twins -though it was mostly Ruffnut the one who hurt Tuffnut, not the other way around-, just a tad embarrassed at being called Hiccup's girlfriend.

Khor removed the noose from his neck and made it disappear as he grinned, reading her thoughts. No, she wasn't his girlfriend… yet.

**Hiccup briefly looks at her, apparently devoid of emotions. "Just… give me until tomorrow. I'll figure something out."**

**He starts to fiddle with his harness's hooks as she gives a small shrug. "Okay." She then frowns and gives him a punch on the shoulder, making him yelp. All things considered, you know, kidnapping, blackmail, coercion, a bit of psychological torture, very close brush with death, he got off very lightly.**

"You know what, the narrator's right," nodded Astrid, giving the Hiccup beside her a much harder punch on the shoulder, making him actually cry out in pain. "You got off lightly."

Hiccup looked at Toothless, who looked back at him and snorted. "What? Now you choose to be all lazy? Where did the protective side of you go?"

"Even Night Furies know not to step in between mates," the Night Fury replied blandly, receiving an elbow in the side for his effort. "What?"

"Will everybody stop teasing me and Astrid?!" exclaimed Hiccup, actually more annoyed than embarrassed. Nowadays, it took a lot for him to be embarrassed – he had a lot of experience with that. "We're not a couple!"

"Yet."

Snotlout laughed. "Of course they're not a couple, because Astrid's _my_ future wife." Snotlout flexed his arms to supposedly show off his muscles, even though no visible change appeared. "Look at these beautif-aaargh!" he cried out when Astrid elbowed him in the stomach, holding her mouth with her other hand.

"Great, and now the lunch from earlier is in my throat."

**"That's for kidnapping me," she tells him when he looks at her, confused and rubbing his arm. He glances at Toothless, who is drinking by the lake. The dragon rises his head, looks at the two of them, shrugs and goes back to drinking. Hiccup turns back to Astrid.**

A few people laughed at the Night Fury's dismissal.

**Astrid then removes her hair from her eyes and glances at him, looking hesitant for a second before grabbing the front of his harness. Hiccup winces, leans away and closes his eyes as he waits for another, more violent punch. However, he is surprised when the girl, instead of punching him, gives him a brief kiss on the cheek.**

**He is shocked as she leans back with a bashful expression on her face. "That's for… everything else." Keeping the hand who hadn't grabbed him close to her chest, she turns away before walking off, leaving the still-unmoving boy alone. After a few steps she glances behind her, realizing he STILL hadn't moved, and takes off in a run.**

**Hiccup watches her go as a small, fond smile makes its way to his face. Toothless arrives, filling the right side of the picture with his wide-pupil eyes and crooning at him. Hiccup's smile is replaced with a small frown as he turns to the dragon. "Wh-Wha-What are you looking at?" he snaps slightly, as the dragon moves his gaze from the boy to the retreating girl. What he is looking at is pretty obvious.**

Finally everyone got over their shock. _Astrid Hofferson_, the overly tough girl who barely even showed affection to her own family, had just _kissed_ someone, not just anyone but _Hiccup Haddock_.

Fortunately, Tuffnut always knew how to diffuse situations… by being an idiot. "Hiccup Horrendous Haddock III, do thou take Astrid… Astrid…" He stopped his dramatic fake ceremony and turned to Astrid. "Hey, what's your middle name?"

"What do you mean?" she snapped, annoyed, though mostly because of the teasing he was about to deliver.

"Your middle name! We all have one," replied Tuffnut. "I'm Tuffnut LaVerne Thorston, and Ruff's Ruffnut Eugene Thorston!"

"Did they call you with a boy name and a girl name each just in case, to be prepared for whatever combination they ended up with at birth?" snickered Snotlout, not really thinking he'd received a confirmation.

"Of course!" nodded Ruffnut. "It spared them a lot of worry at birth!"

A lot of people glared at the Thorston parents, who remained oblivious to it all as they nodded alongside their daughter.

"And we all know Hiccup's middle name is Horrendous," continued Tuffnut, ignoring Hiccup's wince at his awful middle name. As much as he didn't like the meaning behind 'Hiccup' it was still the name of a god compared to his middle name.

"You know what, Tuff's right, I never heard of your middle name, Astrid," noted Snotlout. "I mean, I'm Snotlout Gary Jorgenson and I know that even _Fishlegs_ is Fishlegs Justin Ingerman. We all have a middle name. What's yours?"

Astrid glanced at her parents, who just shrugged helplessly. They never gave her a middle name! How could they have predicted that every single other teen her age would have a middle name, and would then make a fuss over their daughter's lack of one?

"I don't have a middle name, 'Lout," she replied before turning to look at the screen, ignoring any further asinine discussion about middle names.

**The view pans over a few colourful banners as a crowd is heard cheering loudly. The scene transitions to where the crowd is – all around the arena in the Kill Ring. The arena is currently empty, but the Vikings don't care as they loudly cheer and holler, hoping for a good show. The entire village is there.**

**Stoick is seen on some kind of stone stage with two ugly Viking statues marking its corners, as he makes a small speech to his people, who don't stop cheering as he comes up the stage. "Well I can show my face in public again!"**

"What does that mean?" asked Tuffnut, confused.

"He's just gotten back from a Nest hunt, what do you think he means?" Snotlout rebutted.

Stoick nodded in agreement, even though he wasn't _entirely_ certain that was the case. But just in case he actually meant he was too ashamed of his son to go outside, well let's just say he wasn't keen on letting that be known. _He_ wouldn't do it, but he had no idea what his future self might do. In just an hour or two, Stoick knew he had changed more than he had changed in his entire life, so really he didn't know how his future self would interpret that sentence.

**"If somebody told me that in a few short weeks, Hiccup would go from… well, being, ah, ****_Hiccup…_**** to placing first in Dragon Training? I would've tied him to a mast and shipped him off, for fear he'd gone mad!" He gestures wildly while he speaks. Uh, I guess like father like son…**

Stoick was suddenly aware of the keen toxic green eyes watching him at the moment, and for the first time in years, he fought the urge to cower. The last time he'd been so afraid was when he'd accidentally made a stupid joke on Val's time of the month. It didn't end well for anyone involved. To think that the Night Fury could get angry enough to reach that level over an admittedly thoughtless and cruel, but otherwise harmless joke… well, it surely made him worry that the Night Fury might be replacing _his_ spot in Hiccup's life.

Unbeknownst to him, Hiccup was frowning at the screen. "Yeah, sure. Then why is Gobber still there? He's the one who told him exactly that."

The teens covered their mouths to hide their chuckles at his retort, not that it would've mattered anyway since the dragons did the snickering for them.

"Well, when it comes to convincing the Chief, my words hold a lot of weight, you know," Gobber nonchalantly gloated.

"Oh, so that's why he never listened to me? Because I'm below three hundred pounds?" Hiccup continued. To be honest, Gobber had really set himself up for that one.

The teens began to laugh unrepentantly at that, looking at the blacksmith trying to find a way to answer that one.

"Oh course not, it's because we go way back," the man defended himself. "We know each other very well and he knows me well enough to listen to my opinion."

"I'm his son, you'd think he would know me better than, I don't know, just about everyone else in the village?"

"Well, you're also just a teen, Hiccup," Gobber replied, by now sweating profusely. He might've used sarcasm similarly to Hiccup, but he had nothing on Hiccup's sass and snark, nor did he have the creativity and intelligence the boy used and abused to come up with those comments, so he was naturally at disadvantage when it came to those kinds of discussions.

Hiccup rolled his eyes, but let it drop. He could've probably found a way to twist that too, but nothing came to mind at the moment and he didn't want to remain on the topic for too long.

**The crowd cheers and laughs as they all agree with his statement. The arena's chain-roof is seen behind them. "And you know it!" laughs Stoick, shaking his head in amusement before returning smiling but serious, quieting the crowd with a gesture. "But, here we are, and no one's more surprised… or more proud… than I am."**

**We hear the last part of his speech as the scene shifts to Hiccup with his new helmet under his arm and a burdened expression on his face. "Today, my boy becomes a Viking," his father's voice continues from offscreen before the view shifts to Stoick once again. "Today, he becomes ONE OF US!"**

Everyone looked at the mentioned boy to see how he would react. Astrid knew she would be furious after a denigrating speech like that, and unbeknownst to her Snotlout was thinking more or less the same, though he knew he wouldn't let it show how much his father's disappointment actually hurt him.

Fishlegs never really cared about the killing part of Dragon Training, only about the studying part. He endured all the teasing and mockery because he was an Ingerman and Ingermans were kind and gentle souls. Hearing his father talk about how much disappointing he was before he could fight dragons would've shattered his heart.

The twins may not have let much be known about what they were truly feeling, but they knew a thing or two about disappointment. They acted like they didn't care and most of the time they _actually_ didn't give a quarter of a damn about all the damage they caused, the anger of the villagers and also their disappointment. But their parents were as crazy as they were… okay, not _as_ crazy but similarly… so it wasn't hard to just ignore the other villagers. Both shuddered at the thought of just how much disappointed their parents would be, had they been normal like the other villagers.

Sometimes it was a lot better to fool around and make people give up on them, rather than let everyone beat you down just because they thought that way they would learn how to behave properly.

Hiccup was about to make another comment on how Stoick had waited right until the moment he didn't want to be a Viking any more, to actually make him one, when he felt a hand land on each of his shoulder. He looked up and was beyond shocked to see Tuff and Ruff, both with oddly solemn expressions on their faces, now sitting right behind him and his dragon, having somehow reached over Toothless to do that. They squeezed his shoulders lightly before letting their hands drop and going back to their previous spots, leaving the boy confused as all hell.

He would never figure out the twins.

Of course he couldn't know he would actually become the one who understood them better than anyone else in the Archipelago. But of course he couldn't have known he would've become the one who knew all the teens better than anyone in the Archipelago, sometimes even better than the teens themselves. The future had a way of being unpredictable, especially when it came to the auburn-haired Viking teen.

**View changes to behind Hiccup, who is staring out at the cheering crowd, as Astrid walks up to him from behind. The view moves to show both their fronts as Astrid stops behind him. "Hey… be careful with that dragon."**

**Hiccup shrugs slightly without turning around. "It's not the dragon I'm worried about," he says, looking at his father as he walks towards the stone throne outside the arena.**

**"What are you gonna do?" Astrid moves her hair away from her eyes again as she asks.**

**"Put an end to this," is the cryptic reply. It's quite possible he doesn't know what to do either, understandably so given his situation.**

"Wait, I just realized something," exclaimed Snotlout, ignoring Astrid's snort. "Hiccup was about to leave Berk forever, did he remain just because he converted Astrid over to his side?"

Hiccup shook his head. "No, if that had been the case I would've at least offered her to come with me and just go all the same. I wouldn't have remained. But knowing what kind of monster is hidden in the Nest, as well as seeing that Vikings _could_ be convinced dragons aren't evil, probably made me hope I could convince the rest of the village too."

"Sooo… you're gonna try and kidnap all of them?" asked Astrid, raising an eyebrow. "Or do you have another plan?"

"I'll probably try to calm down the Nightmare and then work from there. I don't know, show them the dragons' non-aggressive side?" shrugged the boy. It was the future, so he couldn't be sure, but that was what he would've done.

"Kidnapping them still sounds like the best idea of the two," the blond-haired Shieldmaiden-to-be commented, shaking her head.

"Hey, come on, it's not like I have a lot of options, you know?"

**"Put an end to this," he replies, sounding a tad depressed and miserable before determination slips in. "I have to try."**

**As she looks at him in worry, he turns around for the first time since she arrived. "Astrid, if something… ****_goes wrong…_**** just make sure they don't find Toothless."**

Toothless, Stoick, Gobber and Astrid all shook their heads. Seriously, it was like he wasn't even considering that the 'goes wrong' part meant him ending up seriously injured at the least, and killed at the worst. Did he not have any kind of survival instinct?

Khor laughed after having magically muted himself. Considering what would happen in the next six years… no, no he didn't have survival instincts. His survival instincts had been redirected to safeguard _others'_ survival instead of his own.

**"I will… just promise me it won't go wrong," she says, looking at him with a mix of worry and expectation, as if she really wanted for him to be able to just reassure her that nothing would go wrong.**

**Hiccup looks at her and is about to say something, perhaps to make a promise he cannot know if he'll be able to keep, when Gobber appears from behind the corner. "It's time, Hiccup. Knock 'em dead."**

**Without replying to either blonde, Hiccup walks into the arena, greeted by the chant of his name from the people, not looking back at Astrid's worried expression.**

"Wow, Gobber, way to be nonchalant about seeing Astrid, who up until the day prior wanted to see what colours his insides were, with Hiccup, who up until the day prior basically ran away every time someone tried to talk with him," Snotlout laughed mockingly, earning a sheepish chuckle from the blacksmith.

"As much as I hate to agree with Snotlout, he's not wrong," added Astrid. "That's bound to look suspicious."

Gobber continued to laugh nervously and scratch his head with his hook as he tried and failed to come up with an answer.

**As he enters the arena, Gobber walks out, closing the gate behind him. As the boy walks forward with a very worried and very nervous look on his face, the view shows the other teens bar Astrid basically throwing themselves on the metal railing around the arena to cheer him on the best they could. Tuff and Ruff are basically climbing the rails as they all shout encouragements, even Snotlout.**

**The cheers get louder as Hiccup moves towards the weapons' rack, while Astrid can still be seen watching in worry by the gate, behind the metal grid. Hiccup looks around, seeing all the people chanting his name like there's no tomorrow.**

**As he arrives to the weapons' rack, the view briefly shows Stoick observing intently. The boy picks up a shield before taking the smallest weapon there is – a dagger. Stoick raises his eyebrows at that as he leans back to comment to Gobber, who is standing right beside his throne. "Mmh, I would've gone for the hammer."**

"Not the axe?" wondered Hiccup.

"If I'm not wrong, in the future I said that because a hammer would put up more of a show." Stoick winced at how morbid that 'show' would be, and tried his best to ignore the glares he received for that. "An axe would end the fight too quickly, and you know how much Vikings enjoy a good fight."

**Hiccup takes a deep breath before raising shield and dagger. "I'm ready," he says, even though he doesn't really look ready. Although, no 14-year-old teen with no training, Viking or not, would ever be ready to face one of the strongest dragons in the known Archipelago.**

**The view then shows the Monstrous Nightmare cage's doors as the logs holding them in place slide outwards, unlocking the door. Hiccup frowns in nervousness as he waits for the Nightmare to come out.**

The scene cuts to black after that, earning screams of protest from both sides as Khor smirked at their outrage.

"Continue this immediately!" Stoick all but demanded, jumping to his feet.

"Hell yeah, we want to see that fight!" Tuffnut exclaimed, extremely annoyed that their divine-sent host had decided to cut the fun short.

"Nah, giving you breaks also help you not becoming too deeply involved," shrugged the brown-haired man, earning looks of confusion from everyone. "It will help you keeping your emotions in check instead of letting them run free. It'll help you realize that while this is a future, it's not _the_ future nor the present. You cannot influence it while you're watching it, so it'd be for the best if you accepted that and kept your emotions in check, for your own sake." He knew that advice would fall to deaf ears in Toothless's case when they got to the scene when Hiccup was disowned. Perhaps the Night Fury wouldn't be the only one to be furious beyond comprehension, either, but surely he would be the most terrifying of them all. He'll probably fully live up to the title of _unholy offspring of lightning and death_.

Still not looking completely convinced, everyone sat down and waited for the future to continue.

Meanwhile Astrid, realizing that she had yet to release Hiccup since they'd held onto each other when the Blood Tyrant had been shown, hurried to put some distance between the two of them, much to Toothless's amusement and Hiccup's own embarrassment, which she was mirroring perfectly.

Snotlout, seeing that, was torn between laughing and offering Astrid a spot beside him. He quickly calculated the odds of success of either idea, and went for the smartest, in his opinion. "Hey Astrid, if you're still scared…" he opened his arms in a welcoming manner.

Astrid punched him in the face.

_**Yes, I checked and Astrid is the only one of the teens without a middle name. Le gasp! How terribly careless of her parent not to have given her a middle name! I don't have one but I'd really like to.**_

_**Now, I've seen in some stories the Red Death mind-controlling the dragons and I honestly think that while it's nowhere near the Bewilderbeast's level of control, that has to be true, or the dragons would've just fled and never returned, instead of being enslaved. They show no problem with running away when Toothless brings Hiccstrid to the Nest, and again when Stoick brings the village to the Nest, so there had to be something more to it. Which would also hint at Hiccup's ability, in the second movie, to break Toothless free from the Alpha's mind control.**_

_**Also, about Toothless teasing Hiccstrid and playing matchmaker, hey that's totally canon! At least the fact Toothless really ships them. Even just in Mi Amore Wing (RTTE, S6, Ep6), when Dagur and Mala are being lovey-dovey, Toothless sticks out his tongue as he and Sleuther are both grossed out, yet later he and Stormfly coo and croon when Hiccup and Astrid kiss outside the clubhouse at the end of the episode.**_

_**So Toothless ships Hiccstrid! XD As proved several times when Hiccup and Astrid are around each other and he's nearby.**_

_**Until next time,**_

_**Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh**_


	12. NO!

_**Heya guys! Now, before I forgot! I meant to say this four chapters ago, but I kept forgetting. I will only do movie 1. I will NOT do movie 2 or 3, or the series. At the end of the story I will probably add an extra viewing with snippets from movie 2&3 and from the series (you are welcome to request but only when reviewing the LAST chapter of movie 1, until movie 1 is finished I will ignore the requests, otherwise I'll get swamped). Other than that I will not write a reaction story for any of those, because the historical change was in HTTYD1 and I want to stick to that. Yeah, real original, I know, but I also want to do things orderly and I don't have enough time to write movie 2 and 3 and series too. I'm not angry or anything, I just want to be as clear as possible since I've been forgetting it a lot.**_

_**Alright, longest chapter ever, and also evillest cliffhanger ever! *runs to hide in an anti-nuclear bunker somewhere on some alien world while setting up a defence wall made of innocent dragons who totally do NOT deserve being bombed because of my crimes* See ya!**_

To be honest, Khor found it funny to explain that he'd dispelled the magic that protected them so that Astrid's punch could actually make contact, which had earned him a look of betrayal from the victim.

After that, it didn't take long for Snotlout to recover from the hit, sadly for him he had a lot of experience in that field. That, and Astrid rarely hit him with the intent to actually cause him serious harm. Only hurt him enough to make him realize she was not in the mood to deal with him, aka every single day.

However, everyone was still thinking about what Khor had told them. His reason for forcing them to take breaks.

He said it would help them not get too involved. Now, usually they would brush that aside like the big, strong Viking they were. However, they were watching their own future, and it was something that would go down in history. So they were a little worried, even more so when Khor basically told them that something so bad would happen, it was better if they distanced themselves already.

So they were all wondering… just how bad was it gonna be? What was going to happen?

They had all already guessed Hiccup to be the hero of the story… but if it was Toothless?

True, Khor had said the hero was someone they all knew, and at the time they hadn't known about the Night Fury… or had they?

Maybe not personally but they _knew_ of his existence.

So… would Hiccup die in the ring, and Toothless turn out to be the hero of the war?

They didn't know.

Stoick, Astrid and Toothless were the most worried, obviously. They all knew Hiccup wouldn't be able to kill the Monstrous Nightmare, so whatever Plan B he had had to be spectacular for him to make it out of there alive.

"Okay, sorry for the wait, just really, you shouldn't get too emotional about this. It could get people hurt, not to mention it could cause a lot of chaos and a huge commotion, which would only slow it down even further and make you wait even more for the conclusion." Khor pinched the bridge of his nose. "Let's just get on with this movie already."

Once again everyone exchanged a look before shrugging and going back to stare at the screen, waiting for it to continue the previous scene.

**As soon as the door is unlocked, it bursts out in flames.**

Quite a few people actually jumped at the sudden explosion. Stoick was not one of those. Gobber totally was.

**The aflame Monstrous Nightmare crawls out of the cage, snarling and growling as the crowd oohes at him. The dragon tries to scale the walls but the chains on top of the Arena make it impossible for him to exit. In anger he spits fire at the crowd, that parts with another 'ooh' but otherwise seems pretty under-reacting to the fact a giant fire-breathing reptile just spat liquid flames at them.**

Hookfang snorted. "That's an understatement. I don't understand how the boy in the ring still hasn't run away screaming like during the raid."

Hiccup shrugged. "The gate was closed."

Everyone turned to look at him with raised eyebrows. Even the dumbest of them knew the reason was because he had a plan and he wanted to try it out. The boy himself rolled his eyes. He had mastered sarcasm over years of using it, but the people had mastered not picking up on his sarcasm over the years too. Unfortunately.

What was wrong with saying something and meaning something else, or saying something with so much sarcasm, that it applied twice and ended up meaning exactly that, or saying something and meaning it, but pointing out the irony of it. He didn't know why people disliked sarcasm.

Khor nodded solemnly, reading his mind. He too loved sarcasm, but his voice in most cases came out monotone or annoyed so it was hard to use sarcasm subtly, and overdoing it didn't always work. Hell, he sounded more sarcastic when he _wrote_ than when he spoke! That was just plain unfair. He would've really envied Hiccup for that, if not for the fact he liked his voice's depth way better than Hiccup's high-pitched voice.

**As Hiccup watches, the Nightmare climbs over the chain roof and on the other side of the arena before stopping and turning to look at him, as if only now noticing there was someone in the Arena.**

**Eh, not surprising. Mr Raw Vikingness ain't gonna be winning weight competitions anytime soon.**

The hall burst into giggles as the narrator threw Hiccup's own words at his face.

The boy was outraged, though playfully so. "Hey, it's not my fault Vikings follow the same rules as the dragons for weight competitions!"

No one understood what he meant, well, no one but Toothless, obviously. Astrid and Fishlegs both had an inkling but couldn't be sure. The Night Fury, instead, understood perfectly what he meant, and didn't bother trying to contain his snickers.

"True, Hiccup," he replied between laughters. "I bet there are some Vikings who rank in the top ten, huh?"

"My father is first, Toothless." Seeing him about to retort, Hiccup frowned. "The monster in the Nest is not counted as a dragon. It's simply a cruel monster, towards all of us."

The Night Fury nodded. "Yeah… you're right. Still not sure if even she could dethrone your father though."

Hiccup blew him a raspberry.

**Hiccup prepares himself as the Nightmare slowly climbs down from the overhead chain-roof, all without breaking eye contact (or moving his head), landing in front of him and looking at him, probably curious as to 1) why the Viking was so small and 2) why he hadn't attacked yet.**

"Well we know the answer to one of those questions, what about the other?" Snotlout asked, nudging Hiccup with a teasing look.

The boy raised an eyebrow at him. "Well, I don't know, it's probably because attacking wouldn't be part of the plan."

Snotlout frowned. Had Hiccup just played him? How?! That wasn't even funny! It didn't even make sense?! Did he say that just to intentionally give the answer he didn't mean… oh, right, sarcasm.

**Hiccup starts walking backwards as the dragon approaches him. On the walkways around the arena, the people lean closer to watch the 'fight'.**

**A voice offscreen, probably his father, shouts encouraging words like 'give it to him'. Give what? His life?**

Hiccup snorted.

**Still stepping backwards, Hiccup basically has the Nightmare's snout two feet away from him as the dragon matches his steps with some of his own. The boy drops the knife and then the shield, putting his hands out in front of him in a calming manner.**

**Stoick and Gobber look on confused and worried. "What is he doing?" murmurs the Chief.**

**On the walkways, the people seem disappointed, but also confused, by the lack of fighting.**

"Oh, for the love of– Of course that's what they focus on, instead of the semi-calm dragon!" Hiccup exclaimed, shaking his head. "Oh gods…"

Toothless nudged him. To be honest, now that he could talk with Hiccup, he felt kinda awkward nudging him like… well, a dragon. But using his paws would be even more awkward. "Come on, maybe it'll go better."

Hiccup glanced at Khor, who was innocently looking away, and shook his head. "Something tells me it's not gonna be that easy."

"Well, much worse it can't get, you're about to be eaten, haha," laughed Snotlout. Hiccup glared at him. Despite knowing the boy did actually care, sometimes it was hard to see through his I'm-laughing-at-your-death personality.

Ironic coming from the guy who loved sarcasm.

**Astrid squints from behind the gate.**

**The Nightmare approaches the boy further, snarling. Hiccup holds out his hands more to reassure him, "Eh, it's okay, it's okay… It's okay."**

**The dragon still advances and now glares up at his helmet. Hiccup removes it and the Nightmare huffs with a slight movement of his snout, telling him to throw it aside.**

**"I'm not one of them," states Hiccup, throwing his helmet to the left, where it clatters on the stone floor. The crowd gasps and the Nightmare glances at the other Vikings, eyes wider and pupils rounder.**

"Great, phase one, calm the Nightmare is done," sighed Hiccup. "Now starts the hard part, phase two, calm the Vikings. If only I could just, like…" He held out a hand, looking away. "Do this like I did with Toothless and calm the-" He felt something press against his hand and glanced at it, thinking it the Night Fury, but instead… "Fishlegs?!"

"Sorry!" The husky boy hurried to back away, especially with Toothless glaring at him, possessively wrapping his tail around Hiccup. "I'm just really nervous for yourself… in the future…"

"Back off, human Gronckle," snarled the Night Fury, making him yelp and hide behind the other teens… not like he could actually hide behind them.

"Toothless?" Hiccup called out, confused by his behaviour.

"He was stealing our move."

"Toothless, that's not our-" The Night Fury turned his glare on him. "…okay, fine, it's our move, but that doesn't mean we're the only ones who can do that."

The dragon huffed and for a second, Hiccup actually thought that'd be it. Unfortunately… "Okay, fine, you can do it with Astrid too when she's angry. No one else."

Hiccup groaned and hid his face into his hands. "Oh gods… Not even dragons?"

"Only when you're in danger and it's the only way."

**Stoick, confused, starts to rise from his 'throne'. His default emotion when confused is probably anger, so it's not so surprising to see him focusing on that sentence, rather than on the fact his son is actually still alive.**

Stoick opened his mouth to protest… and then closed it with a grimace. His default emotion wasn't anger… right?

"Wow, the Chief looks angry~" snickered Ruffnut, elbowing her brother but talking to Hiccup.

"He's looked angry since the day I was born," the boy replied with a sigh and a shrug. Then, realising how that sounded, and seeing Toothless's eyes narrow, he hurried to add, "but I'm sure there's no connection."

Stoick deflated. _'I'm not like that… right? It's not like I always get angry whenever I'm confused or anything, right?'_ He turned to his trusty old friend Gobber. "I'm not like that… right?"

"Sure you are, Chief!" the smith exclaimed cheerfully, not even bothering to keep his voice down. "That and worse!"

"Thank you, Gobber," Stoick replied sarcastically, unknowingly replying almost in the same way Hiccup would've replied. Like father, like son, after all.

**Astrid glances at the Chief, worried about his reaction, then shifts her gaze on the crowd watching.**

**The Vikings gasp and cover their mouths.**

"Okay, I just want to point this out," Hookfang spoke up, annoyed. "These are the people who fought us tooth and nail, the ones who were cheering for a gruesome bloodbath, and I'm still not sure whose blood they were asking for, and now they're gasping because some scrawny little kid threw an ill-fitting helmet aside and said he wasn't one of them, the very thing everyone told him for years?"

"When you put it that way, it does make very little sense," Stormfly shrugged, looking at the Vikings, who were currently squirming awkwardly in their seats, a tad embarrassed at being called out.

"Well, the boy's always wanted to be a Viking, and he _was_ chosen to fight the Nightmare," Spitelout replied, though even he didn't look too sure of what he was saying. "That's why we're shocked…"

"And you weren't shocked when he literally threw away his only weapon and his only defence, while facing off one of the most dangerous dragons in the neighbourhood?!" Toothless growled. He was starting to see red again.

_'Uh-oh, if this is already triggering him, I dread to see him react to Stoick being the only one to try and help Hiccup, and Gods help us he's gonna be murderously furious after the argument scene…'_ thought Khor, for once having second thoughts about his actions. Would this really help them? Or would it make Toothless so hateful towards the rest of the village, that he would convince Hiccup to go away nonetheless? _'Dammit, we could end up with a serious grudge…'_

"N-No, it's just that-," Spitelout wasn't allowed to finish.

"Just how little do you care for Hiccup?!" Toothless shouted, before Hiccup interrupted him, saying something that made his -and every other dragon's- blood boil.

"It's okay Toothless, it's not that they hate me or anything, it's how they treat the others too."

Hiccup probably meant it in a reassuring way. He meant that he was treated just like the more loved teens of the village. But his words just made the dragons wonder if those 'more loved' teens were actually loved at all, considering just how easily they were dropped in an arena with very dangerous dragons loose, and the teacher lazying off outside.

Toothless growled and extended his tail to wrap it around the other five teens before pulling them all toward himself. They were a little cramped together, but it didn't matter, what mattered was to get them away from those Vikings. "They are my siblings now. You don't deserve them, none of you do! Stay away from them!"

Harald and Greta Hofferson rose, as well as all the other parents, ready to protest, but apparently that was just what Toothless needed to completely blow a fuse.

"YOU DROPPED THEM IN AN ARENA WITH ANGRY DRAGONS! ALL OF THEM SHOW SIGN OF STRESS BECAUSE OF HOW THE VILLAGE TREATS THEM! AND JUST NOW, JUST NOW!, YOU DIDN'T EVEN MOVE ANY CLOSER WHEN THEY WENT TO SIT WITH THE DRAGONS, ALL BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T SHARE THEIR VIEW YET!" Toothless stood up, growling, until he felt Hiccup hugging his neck. He tried to shake him off gently, but the boy held on. "Hiccup, let me go," he hissed, but the boy didn't let up.

"No, you need to calm down. Life in Berk is tough, and it's mostly because we are under constant attack. Tough love may be… well, tough… but it keeps you alive here. They can't spoil us. And we all know that every day might be the last one for some of us. It's not easy to live like that."

_'I wasn't talking about tough love when I mentioned your stress, I was talking about the expectations placed on you all!'_ Toothless thought, still very much pissed off, but unable to fully go on a rampage with Hiccup calming him down. The boy had way too much power over him for his own good.

The family of the teens were still standing, but none of them was feeling very brave after seeing the Night Fury's outburst. It seemed like the more they watched, the angrier he became. Even the so-called 'Fearless' Hoffersons quietly sat back down.

Besides, the teens could very easily go back to their families whenever they wanted – right?

The teens themselves, instead, found themselves confused… and scared. Most of them were going down the same train of thought Astrid had gone through earlier – the villagers' expectations and how much it hurt to continuously uphold them. And how they weren't so different from Hiccup, in the end – the auburn-haired boy had just been the one to refuse to adapt to what the village wanted.

"Wow," Tuffnut breathed out, feeling his eyes sting as he realized just how much of his life had been ruled by expectations, and how much time he had wasted on living up to them. "That's just sad…"

"Yeah… it's like we didn't even get a choice in the matter," Ruffnut agreed, equally hurt and confused. So many explosions missed…

"Oh, wait, maybe that's because we actually didn't?" Snotlout quipped sarcastically, crossing his arms and sending a quick glare in his father's direction. "I swear, nothing I do satisfies that man. He always wants more, and more, and more. I mean, come on! Am I not allowed to be myself?"

Fishlegs knew he was the one with the least amount of expectations placed on him, and basically he had the 'softest' family, but that was balanced out by the amount of disappointment he got. Snotlout might've mocked him often, but eventually they were still friends. A lot of the villagers actually meant their quips. And even worse, he thought, they were _sad_ for him, because despite his build optimal for a Viking, he never amounted to anything in combat. They were _sad_ he was… himself.

Astrid had already thought about it and had already reached the world-shattering realization that she'd allowed her entire life to be ruled by expectations, but she never actually made the next step and asked herself _who_ placed those expectations. She'd just assumed they were simply there and followed them, but eventually they _hadn't_ just 'been there'. People _had_ told her how she was supposed to act. Her desire to restore her family honour led her to fulfilling those expectations and the people creating new ones even higher up. It never ended.

And while all of them knew it wasn't _completely_ the villagers' fault as they too had been raised like that and simply thought it to be the only way to go, they still couldn't _not_ be hurt by how they'd been forced to be… _not themselves_… because of them.

The newly-adopted 'dragons' stubbornly faced the screen, avoiding their families' eyes for the time being.

**As the crowd murmurs to themselves, Stoick rises from his throne with a menacing look. "Stop the fight," he commands, sternly but still somewhat calmly.**

**"No! I need you all to see this," counters Hiccup, sparing at glance at him before returning his attention to the Nightmare before him.**

**The dragon is still suspicious, but makes no move to attack him. The boy holds out a hand, but this time he doesn't turn around like he did with Toothless. "They're not what we think they are. We don't have to kill them."**

Toothless, though still pissed, was a little happier to see that even though the hand thing was similar, it wasn't _their_ move. Hiccup hadn't looked away. He hadn't placed his full trust in that dragon. Toothless knew it was petty, but he still sent Hookfang a look of superiority, which confused the red dragon to no end.

**The crowd murmurs still, but looks at the Chief as if he holds all the answers. Now enraged, Stoick storms out of his throne with a shout. "I SAID STOP THE FIGHT!" he yells, banging his hammer against the metal railing and bending it.**

**The dragon's pupils, which were much rounder now that he was about to let Hiccup touch his snout, go back to being slits as the Nightmare is startled. He tries to bit off the boy's hand, who steps back with a scared yelp.**

"NO!" Stoick jumped up, eyes wide in fright and self-loathing. He couldn't believe it. In his anger, he had put his son into the most dangerous situation he could've possibly found himself in. Trapped in an arena with no hiding places, with a furious and deadly dragon rampaging after him. If the Nightmare killed him… it would've been on his hands. Because he hadn't listened, his son could die.

He sank back down to the ground, eyes wide as he took his head in his hands. "No…"

Toothless, meanwhile, had curled himself around Hiccup -and thus around all the teens, squishing them together- and growled at Hookfang, who chuckled nervously and went to hide behind his father, Magmascale.

**The crowd oohes as Hiccup runs away, barely dodging a jet of flames, screaming for his life.**

**The scene abruptly changes to Toothless sleeping in the cove, whose head shoots up as soon as he hears the echo of Hiccup's scream.**

"You heard me from all the way there?" Hiccup asked out loud, shocked.

"Of course, I will always hear you if you are in trouble," Toothless exclaimed, outraged that he would even think of that.

"I don't doubt that but it's still pretty far away…"

"How are you not freaking out about being chased by a Monstrous Nightmare?!"

"…" Hiccup stared at him. "It's the future not the present?"

**Hiccup runs away as the Nightmare jumps on the wall and then back on the ground, chasing after him.**

**On the stands, Stoick sees his son in trouble and starts elbowing people. "Out of my way!" he commands.**

**Astrid leans out of the gate's metal bars in worry. "Hiccup!" she calls out before turning and grabbing an axe from the wall, using it as a lever to lift up the heavy gate and slide underneath. She pulls herself up on the other side. Odd since the space between the bars looked wide enough for her to pass through…**

**Scene changes to Toothless, trying desperately to climb out of the cove, but he keeps slipping, unable to find a good hold on the stone. He almost reaches the top, but slips. However, he manages to grab hold with his claws, stopping himself before he can lose balance and fall.**

Hiccup was gobsmacked. "You could escape whenever you wanted?!"

"No! I tried but I never managed!" exclaimed Toothless, committing that spot in the cove's walls to memory, just in case he ever had to actually escape the cove without Hiccup there to help him fly.

Astrid also reminded herself to check if she could actually pass through the gate's bars without needing to lift the gate. And if it turned out to be too small, she'd try to find a way back there and rub it in the narrator's face.

At the moment, however, she was too worried for Hiccup – as well as everyone else, obviously.

**Hiccup scrambles into view in the arena before quickly ducking to dodge a blast of fire with a yelp. He runs to the weapons' rack to grab a shield, but the Nightmare steps on it and tries to attack him, making him run away again.**

**Toothless is seen rushing through the forest in great leaps, like a panther, using his wings to lengthen his leaps and gain some extra speed. He looks like he's grimacing, but he's fiercely determined as well.**

**View changes to Stoick slamming down on the metal gate that blocked the entrance to the arena. The large Viking grabbed it and opened it up without a problem.**

"Uh… I know this is not the time and all…" Snotlout spoke up. "But why does the gate open like that? I mean, that can stop people from entering by pushing, but if a dragon that's inside tries to push it open, it'll open up like nothing. So how does that keeps them trapped, exactly?"

"Because there are two gates at the entrance," replied Gobber, scratching his moustache. "One slides right up, that one opens outwardly."

Snotlout still didn't look very convinced.

**Astrid is shown in the arena, watching the Nightmare chase after the boy. "Hiccup!" she calls out in worry as the dragon closes in. She looks around for a second and then moves to the destroyed weapons' rack, kicking up a warhammer before grabbing it and tossing it at the dragon in an incredible show of both skill and timing.**

**The object flies through the air and strikes the dragon's head just in time to stop him before he can bite Hiccup. The force of the hit throws the dragon's head to the ground -badass Astrid moment number umpteen- but it also makes him focus on another target. The Nightmare turns towards the girl who, realising the flaw in her plan, starts running as well, chased by the Nightmare.**

Astrid couldn't stop a small smirk from reaching her face. Badass indeed. Though honestly her throw had been more badass than the force itself, since the weight of the weapon would give it more strength anyway. True, throwing a warhammer wasn't easy, but still she couldn't take all the credit for knocking down the Nightmare.

"Someone's looking like Snotlout," Hiccup quipped, looking at her smug expression and successfully making her scowl at him. "What? You mean being smug isn't being Snotlout?"

"I wasn't being _smug_, I was just… accepting justified praise," she replied, taking a moment to think on how to express 'being smug' without actually saying it. "Besides, I'm pretty sure your future self is grateful."

Hiccup rolled his eyes but didn't reply.

**Stoick arrives to the second gate of the arena's entrance and lifts it up with a grunt, proving once again his strength is just as monstrous as the Nightmare.**

**"This way!" he shouts, gesturing the two teens over. Normally, keeping the gate open with a ferocious, rampaging dragon running around wouldn't be safe, but well… Stoick could kick the Nightmare's butt any day of the week. Literally kick his butt.**

Hookfang whimpered. Toothless was _still_ glaring at him, and Stoick was looking a little _too_ proud of the praise he just received. He admitted that Hiccup didn't deserve to die, but how was he supposed to know that in the future? And that was after Khor-whatshisname told them to take breaks so they wouldn't get too emotional!

"I'm pretty sure something will somehow go wrong," Hiccup drawled sarcastically.

"Of course…" Snotlout replied just as sarcastically. "I mean, come on, it's you we're talking about. You basically attract trouble!"

"Really? Hiccup can attract trouble?!" Tuffnut piped up with a giant, dumb grin. "Oh, oh, oh! Can you attract some really big trouble while you're walking near Ughugh's hut?! Ruff and I were gonna prank her tomorrow!"

"He doesn't mean that _literally_, Tuff," Fishlegs reminded them, making the male twin slump down, dejectedly.

"Oh, come on, the big Chief is there, what could possibly happen?" Belch snorted. Like the twins they would later bond with, the Zippleback wasn't the sharpest tool of the bunch. Barf was marginally more intelligent, but both heads never really understood the importance of not jinxing something.

**The Nightmare spits fire again at Astrid, who dodges out of the way and runs toward the gate, with Hiccup not far behind her. She reaches Stoick, who pulls her to his side and reaches out to grab Hiccup as well.**

**The Nightmare, now behind the boy, spits liquid fire at the gate, making the boy slide to a stop before being burned, and the two already at the gate flinch away.**

**Seeing the dragon jump on the wall to attack him, Hiccup tries to run away before the dragon lands where he was not two seconds prior. Still yelping slash screaming in fear, the boy runs towards the centre of the arena, but the dragon pounces on him and trips him up, making him land on the ground before slamming a claw on him, just barely missing his body but still keeping him trapped.**

Everyone in the room glared at Barf and Belch. Barf tried to get away from the other head, which only resulted in the two of them trying to go separate ways and being pulled back, slamming their heads together and knocking themselves out.

"Hey, that looks so cool!" Tuffnut exclaimed before he turned toward his sister. "Come on, sis, let's do it too!"

"Of course!" proclaimed Ruffnut. The two banged helmets and grinned, a bit dazed but otherwise fine. "Ha! We didn't get knocked out!"

"Unlike that Zippleback," Tuffnut laughed, admiring the downed dragon. Any dragon that could and was willing to bang heads with someone, even itself, was awesome in his opinion. "I guess our Thorston heritage does come in handy!"

"What the hell are you two muttonheads talking about?!" Snotlout screamed, frustrated.

"Well, my dear Snotlout, we'll let you know that in the past, our ascestors' skulls were used as helmets due to their extreme resistance to blunt trauma," Ruffnut lectured him in some weird accent none of them recognized.

"Seriously?! And you do this now?!" Snotlout groaned in disgust at the two. "Hiccup's about to die and you two bang heads!"

"Oh, so you _do_ care," Fishlegs teased him.

"Oh, ha, ha, ha, shut up, Fishface," grumbled the Jorgenson, not caring if his answer didn't actually make much sense.

**The Nightmare snarls at him before a whistling sound starts to build up.**

**Gobber turns around, shocked, recognizing the sound. The crowd turns too, just in time to see Toothless quickly running down the stairs carved into the mountainside and leaping toward the arena before blasting a hole in the metal rails with a plasma shot. This also has the side effect of blowing up a lot of smoke in the arena.**

**The crowd, after throwing themselves to the ground to avoid the blast, leans forwards to watch what is going on in the ring.**

"Toothless to the rescue!" a lot of the younger dragons chorused, cheerful and confident that the Night Fury could take care of the Nightmare.

Toothless grinned, but it was tense, and Hiccup could clearly see it. Despite knowing he could take care of the Nightmare, like Hiccup had said earlier, it wasn't the dragon what had him worried.

The young auburn-haired Viking would've been biting his nails in worry, had he had that habit. As it was, he was pressing his lips so tightly they were losing colour, staring at the screen while also keeping an arm on his 'brother's neck, as if that could protect him from what _could've_ happened in the future.

"Hiccup, are you okay?" Fishlegs asked, noticing his distress.

"I'm fine, just a bit on edge." The boy shook his head and focused on the screen once more.

**Hiccup, in the smoke, is seen as the Nightmare claw is pushed down on him.**

**In the smoke, a hazy draconic figure is seen flapping its wings. It's Toothless, fighting the Nightmare.**

**Back to Hiccup, the claw is suddenly ripped off of him and he rolls to the side.**

**From the huge smoke cloud, the Nightmare emerges with the Night Fury on top of it. The red dragon rolls on the ground, cawing as the black one continues to claw and bite at it.**

**Gobber leans closer to the rails in absolute disbelief. "Night Fury!"**

"No, Changewing," Toothless rolled his eyes. He knew he couldn't really fault them for that one, they literally never saw a Night Fury, to the point they had no drawing on the Book of the Dragons, not even a crude one.

Hiccup's fingers tensed and dug deeper into his dragon's scales as his worry escalated. That was a scenario straight out of one of his nightmares.

**The Nightmare can't get the Night Fury off its back, so it flips over and slams him into the ground, trying to twist its neck to bite him. The black dragon lands on his back and claws at the Nightmare, who manages to bite his left forepaw -which did absolutely nothing- before being forcefully and violently thrown off by the Night Fury's legs.**

**The red dragon lands on its feet (claws?) and roars at the black one, who roars back in defiance, standing protectively in front of Hiccup, who is still on the ground, watching the unfolding scene.**

**The view switches to above, showing the chains and underneath, in the arena, the two dragons facing off. The Nightmare tries to move around the Night Fury to attack the auburn-haired Viking, but Toothless blocks his way, still roaring at him.**

**Finally getting the message, the Nightmare starts to back away. On the stands, the teens are shown to be shocked by what is happening. Tuff, in the middle of the view, is left open-mouthed.**

**Back to the dragons, Toothless roars one last time, with a small pounce for added measure, making the Nightmare scurry away in fear.**

In the hall, Toothless gave Hookfang one last glare and snarl before finally focusing back on the screen. Immediately, he winced. He was in an arena full of people – all of which both scared of him, and more than willing to die if it meant killing the dreaded Night Fury.

Hiccup had basically gone white, meanwhile.

"Hiccup, are you sure you're okay?" Fishlegs asked again.

"Do you want us to ask Khor to take a break?" Astrid offered as well, glancing at their host, who seemed -as usual- detached and composed, as opposite to the vast majority of the other occupants of the room.

"No!" exclaimed Hiccup, before adding in a quieter voice, "No. I need to see how this ends. If we stop here, I'll be nervous all thorough the break and it won't solve anything."

"Easy there, Hiccup, you can just fly out of there with Toothless," Snotlout commented boredly. He was actually worried for both Hiccup and Toothless, the future ones at least, but obviously no one could tell. For all his faults and flaws, he was actually pretty good at hiding his feelings.

"No, I can't. There's not enough space for Toothless to fly out of there vertically, and if we were to try and blast the chains near the edges for a more diagonal take-off, it would kill the people behind those chains," Hiccup shook his head in despair. "And there's my dad at the entrance, which is a good reason not to go that way all by itself."

"Wow, wouldn't wanna be you there," Tuffnut spoke up, completely unfazed by the tension both in the room and on the screen.

Ruffnut punched him. "Idiot! He's obviously nervous, can't you see?"

"Hey, sorry if my thinking comes out of my mouth!" Tuffnut crossed his arms and scoffed in offence. "The things I think, I say out loud," he added, just for the sake of rhyming.

"Well then put a filter in your mouth, Hiccup doesn't need to know just how doomed he actually is!" countered his sister, all the while Hiccup, Fishlegs, Astrid, Snotlout and Toothless looked at them with deadpan expressions.

"Well, at least the twins are good for distracting us from the drama," Fishlegs commented, although sarcastically so.

**The crowd is growing noisier. Hiccup gets up and runs to Toothless, pushing away his snout. "Alright, Toothless, go! Get out of here!" he orders, trying not to be heard by the crowd.**

**The dragon doesn't budge an inch.**

**Spitelout throws himself in the arena from the stands, followed by several other Vikings as a cry of "Kill it!" is heard.**

"Oh gods…" Hiccup wanted so badly to just hide his face into his hands and stop looking, but he couldn't force himself to do it. It was too important for him not to see it.

Snotlout, meanwhile, facepalmed. "Of course my dad's the first one to jump in to fight the unholy offspring of lightning and death itself. Oh well, it was nice knowing you, dad!"

Toothless was trying to stop himself from going on a rampage, but it was hard, it was really really hard. He knew it was only a matter of time now before he burst out again, but still he tried.

A few of the Vikings were worried about the ones jumping into the Arena, as it was a _Night Fury_, after all, but most of them just wanted to see if they could actually win. Not that they wanted to kill that dragon any more, but it would've been nice to know if the mysterious legend could actually live up to its dark reputation.

"Huh, is it really a good idea to charge toward them when Toothless is super-protective of Hiccup and will probably assume you want to hurt him?" Tuffnut wondered out loud.

"Tell you what, he actually makes a good point," noted Stormfly, surprised by the male twin's moment of brightness.

"Really? I do?" Tuffnut smiled victoriously before frowning. "Wait, what point?"

"And there is our Tuffnut," Astrid commented, rolling her eyes before frowning at the screen. "Though he's right, charging in like that is just gonna agitate Toothless even more. Unless Hiccup climbs on and they fly away together, I don't think Toothless would even think of leaving him behind now…"

Toothless snorted. _'Duh, that should've been obvious,'_ he thought, but refrained from saying it out loud. Little did he know that he would soon explode once again – and not for the last time, either.

**Hiccup tries to push him away again. "Go, go!" he orders, but the dragon doesn't move. Instead, the Night Fury chooses to glare with narrowed pupils at the Vikings charging in towards the two of them with drawn weapons.**

**Stoick grabs an axe from the wall at the entrance and charges in as well, ignoring Astrid's cries of "No, no!".**

**Hiccup tries to stop him as well, gesturing for him to stay back. "No, Dad! Dad, he won't hurt you!" Well, not yet anyway.**

Hiccup groaned. "Perfect, just perfect! Oh, the gods hate me. Why did it have to go so _spectacularly_ wrong?" He tried to pet Toothless's head to calm himself down -petting his Night Fury was actually a very good way to deal with stress, further proof that Toothless was part cat-, but the black dragon seemed to be almost _vibrating_ in anger, his green eyes glaring at the Vikings, and at Stoick specifically. "Bud? Toothless, what's wrong?"

"_What's wrong?!_" he finally exploded, making the boy jump back, startled. "Everything! That's what's wrong! And the worst part is, this is so _normal_ that none of you even know what I'm talking about!"

True to his words, there wasn't a single Viking who seemed to have half an idea what was the source of his anger. Well, they could assume it was because he was trapped in the screen showing the future, but that was oh so wrong. So completely wrong it wasn't even funny.

No, the reasons why he was angry were others… and in his opinion, they were much _worse_.

"Alright, let's start with the fact that none of you did anything when Hiccup was about to be murdered by the Nightmare, you did _nothing_!" Toothless shouted the last word, emphasizing it with a plasma blast that exploded against the ceiling. "You did absolutely nothing! You just watched as a fourteen years old boy avoided Death by an inch several times and all you did was 'ooh' and 'aah' like it was some kind of sick show!"

Truth to be told, the Vikings did look a bit ashamed at that. It was tradition -and law- for the best student of Dragon Training to kill a dragon in front of the entire village, which usually led them to become more popular than the other students, but it wasn't like Hiccup had been the very first person to not be able to kill a Nightmare. He had certainly been the one with the lousiest 'match', but as Hiccup himself had narrated at the beginning, only the best Vikings went after Nightmares – they were too tough for just anyone to defeat.

"But I could accept that, if it was something like 'do or die' or whatever sick philosophy you Vikings live by. At least Stoick chose to actually be a decent human being and went to at least try and give Hiccup a way out. But even then, he didn't even step into the arena. Not even he, Stoick the Vast, who could punch a Monstrous Nightmare into submission bare-handedly, actually did anything." Toothless blasted again when the Chief looked ready to interrupt. "Shut up. I'm sure you were about to help him anyway when I arrived, but that's what you are _supposed_ to do. I mean, come on, what kind of monster lets their son die right before their eyes just because 'they weren't good enough'?"

Silence was all the answer he received. Some protests were starting to surface, mainly from the teens themselves, so the Night Fury chose to soldier on and continue his rant.

"Things get worse when _I_ had to run all the way across the island to save him, because no one else did. Not even ten seconds after I enter the arena, and _BAM_! You all remember you are tough, fearless Vikings." Toothless growled. "You didn't do anything when a child needed you. Yet, you were oh so ready to jump in as soon as a 'good catch' appeared. I mean, saving Useless? Nah, not worth the effort. But killing a Night Fury? Who cares if attacking could make it lash out and _actually_ kill Hiccup, let's just attack it all together so we maximize the chances for _both of them_ to die. Great plan, guys, it really shows just how little you care for Hiccup. But maybe I'm being too specific here…" Toothless had a fire lit behind his eyes when his glare swept over the assembled Vikings. "You would've done the same had it been any other teen. No, not just that, had it been _anyone_. Who cares about saving lives, if it means you get to kill a dragon as rare as a Night Fury."

"Toothless, I think they get it…" mumbled Hiccup. "And besides, this is the future, they've changed…"

"Can they change? Yes, and I guess they're on the right road. Have they changed? No, not yet." Toothless snorted. "And besides, it's better if they get harshly scolded _now_ and learn their lesson _now_, rather than not learning the lesson and needing to be taught it later."

"Jeez, you sound like an old woman, all wise-y and stuff," groaned Snotlout.

The Night Fury huffed. "I've only seen fourteen winters, I'll have you know!"

"Wait, you mean you're our age?" asked Hiccup, shocked.

He just shrugged his scaly shoulders. "Yes. I just grew up quicker, especially because I have no parents and I lived at the Nest."

The boy gave him a comforting rub under the chin, which he accepted with a purr.

**Stoick charges in, ignoring Hiccup's shout of "No, no, no, stop! You're making it worse!"**

**Whether the boy's talking to his father or to his dragon is unknown.**

**Toothless zeroes in on Stoick and quite simply kicks away a few of the other Vikings as if they were nothing but toys, not even bothering to look at them as he launches them away with powerful kicks to the chest.**

**Stoick comes into view to attack Toothless, but the black dragon immediately jumps on him, tossing away his axe and rolling to a stop above the Chief.**

**Hiccup tries to stop the fight before someone (Stoick) gets killed. "Toothless, stop!"**

**Heedless of his shout, the Night Fury lifts his head back and takes a deep breath as Stoick struggles to get him off – futilely so as the big Viking can't even budge the black dragon.**

"No!" Hiccup shouted, shocked that his best friend would do such a thing. "Dad!"

Did he not realize Stoick was his father? He'd called him such a few seconds prior, and Toothless usually understood everything he was told!

Said dragon winced. He really hoped he wouldn't actually kill the Chief.

**"Nooo!" Hiccup orders again, as the other Vikings approach but don't attack.**

**Toothless stops, swallowing back the gas building in his throat, and looks at him in confusion, not understanding why he couldn't kill the bad Viking with an axe and an attitude problem.**

Stoick took the insult in stride. At least he was alive…

Toothless frowned at the Vikings _now_ choosing not to attack, but let it go.

Hiccup sighed in relief. His father was alive. Maybe there _was_ a way to stop them before someone died…

**Hiccup pants, tired both physically and psychologically, after the whole ordeal.**

**"Get it!" A cry puts an end to the quiet moment. A weapon hits Toothless in the face before Spitelout grabbed his snout to keep his mouth shut, letting others close in as well as they push him off of Stoick and onto the ground, where he is pinned down.**

**"No, no, no! Please- Just- Don't hurt him!" Hiccup tries to step in, but Astrid stops him before he can put himself in an even worse situation. Not that he could've done much anyway. "Please don't hurt him…" he repeats, defeated.**

"No!" Hiccup shot to his feet, shocked and angry, before turning to the others. "What is wrong with you! He wasn't doing anything! He just protected me! I was literally right beside him and he did nothing! How could you think he'd hurt me?!"

"They didn't think at all," Meatlug grumbled, not happy at all with how the Vikings had been behaving in the last minutes of the 'movie'. Not that she'd liked their behaviour earlier, but it was still better than this.

"Of course not," scoffed the Nadder Skyblaze, scowling at the Vikings. "They just thought about killing the Nig- Toothless. They don't think of anything else."

The dragons grumbled and nodded. When they'd first started watching that 'movie', they had all felt like the Vikings' harshness had been justified due to the raids they were forced to perform against the village, but now? Now they were almost glad they destroyed the village.

The Vikings didn't huddle together against the common threat, no, they instead stopped caring for the others and just thought about killing dragons. It wasn't about defence any longer, it was just pure bloodlust.

"Hiccup, I'm sorry, but what other choices did we have?!" Stoick exploded as well, raising to his feet and easily towering over the boy even from several feet away. "They did not see what we saw. They didn't know anything, and they believed that a Night Fury was the cruellest, most dangerous dragon ever. They- _We_ reacted to try and get rid of what we believed was a great threat to our village!"

Hiccup scowled at him. "He still wasn't doing anything. You could've at least given him a chance!"

"Hiccup, calm down," Toothless reassured him, although he too wasn't very pleased. "You're smarter than them, you make connections they'd never make and see things they cannot. You can't blame them for not being as smart as you are." However, what he didn't say was, _'And then there's the fact that you actually have a good heart, while they don't. Or if they do, they've buried it underneath so much hatred and bloodlust and violence that it's unrecognisable. You would never give up on trying the peaceful way. They wouldn't even consider the peaceful way – they wouldn't even think there was one. And let's hope you never change.'_

Astrid and Fishlegs both pulled Hiccup back down, making him sit by Toothless again.

**The pinned dragon warbles, worried about both himself and Hiccup, as more Vikings come closer. Other Vikings are pulling the Nightmare back into its cage, where it goes without complaints. Probably scared by the Vikings capable of pinning down a Night Fury.**

**A Viking whose face is not seen offers an axe to Stoick, now without a helmet, who looks from it to Toothless, pinned but still fiercely glaring at him, before pushing the axe away. "Put it with the others."**

Hiccup bit his lip, but sighed in relief. "At least you're safe, bud," he commented, petting Toothless's head.

"Yeah but you're in huge trouble…" mumbled Toothless, wincing. "I'm sorry…"

"Bud, you _saved_ my life, what are you apologising for?" smiled the boy. "And besides, I'm always in trouble. In the last decade, I can think on my two hands the number of uninterrupted weeks I've gone without getting into trouble."

"Yeah, but this is _big_ trouble," countered Snotlout. "This is a I-befriended-a-dragon kind of trouble. Which is completely unheard of before. No one's ever done that."

"Yeah, I mean, there were some people who didn't like all the violence and tried not to kill dragons, but no one ever trained a dragon just out of the blue," added Fishlegs, humming nervously in-between words. "Not to mention you just broke the tradition and… well…"

"Vikings like traditions!" Ruffnut spoke up, appearing along with the brother over the large boy's shoulders. "Way more than they like you!"

Hiccup threw her a deadpan stare.

"Come on, Hiccup. R-e-l-a-x. Relax," Snotlout told him, leaning back. "It's not like Toothless is gonna die and you're gonna die too and then everyone is gonna die because the big dragon will destroy Berk."

Hiccup turned his glare from Ruffnut to Snotlout before shaking his head. "Oh gods… this is a mess…"

**Scenes changes to the great hall, shrouded in darkness. The door opens off-screen, casting a line of light on the floor, and Hiccup stumbles in as Stoick's shadows is seen at the door.**

**Said Chief is currently panting in fury. "I should've known," he seethes, slamming the door behind him. The door re-opens again, still ajar. "I should've seen the signs!"**

**"Dad…" Hiccup began, but the Chief didn't listen.**

**"We had a deal!" exclaims Stoick, glancing at his son, who is running after him.**

"You call that a deal?" scoffed a Zippleback, Zippy and Zappy. The dragon was still beside Grass and Wood, the Zippleback traumatised by seeing his death onscreen. "I call that bullying people into submission."

Stoick glared at him. He was completely right, but he still glared at him.

"Can we just continue watching this? I'd rather not be left hanging for long," Astrid cut in before it could degenerate into an argument.

Toothless swallowed back his rant and grumbled in agreement.

**"I- I know, we did, b-but that was before I- I-… Ahh, it's all so messed up…" Hiccup passes a hand through his hair, frustrated and desperate.**

**"So everything in the ring…" replies Stoick, turning around angrily and gesturing at him accusingly. "A trick?! A lie…" The first is a question, the second sounds more like a frustrated statement.**

**"I-I screwed up. I-I-I should've told you before now…" Hiccup continues his rant, walking after him.**

"Wait, did Hiccup just swear?" Tuffnut exclaimed, shocked by Hiccup's choice of words. "I thought he was above using bad words!"

Everyone stared at him flatly, then Hiccup just said, "Fuck you."

Tuffnut gasped in shock, and the others all returned to watch the movie.

Seriously, growing up with _Stoick_, who could _not_ have picked up some delicate choice words?

**"I… just you… Take this out of me, be mad at me, but please…" Hiccup stops and his father glances at him from over his shoulders, finding him pressing his hands to his chest to emphasize the point. "Just don't hurt Toothless."**

**Stoick turns around, annoyed. "The dragon? That's who you're worried about?! Not the people you almost killed?!" his voice rises along with his anger.**

"So basically no one?" Everyone stared at Hiccup, who shrugged. "Hey, you really think _I_ could kill anyone, willing or not? Toothless, sure, but me?"

"Yes, that was a bad choice of words, he just implied you were directly responsible for those people putting their lives at risk, while the fault is mostly on them and Toothless as the actual combatants," Tuffnut spoke up before stopping for an intake of breath. "Nnh-nnh, you should study more."

Stoick glared at him too.

**"He was just protecting me, he's not dangerous!" Hiccup tries to protest.**

Toothless stared flatly at Hiccup, who shrugged. "What? You're not… as long as they don't annoy you, I suppose."

The dragon rolled his eyes. "A Night Fury, not dangerous," he huffed, though he was secretly glad Hiccup trusted him so much he didn't even consider him a threat to anyone. Him, the mightiest of all dragons! And Hiccup didn't even consider him dangerous.

Stoick, however, knew himself too well to allow himself to laugh at Hiccup's comment. He sighed and stood up before walking over to his son. Toothless gave him the stink eye but pushed Hiccup towards him nonetheless.

"Son," the Chief began, kneeling and putting his hands on Hiccup's shoulders, eclipsing the poor boy from sight. "I fear that this… vision… will soon lead to a show of anger on my part. Please remember that no matter what, you're my son, and you always will. I'm sorry if I wasn't present or loving in the past and I know I can never repent for all those years, but trust me when I say this – whatever I'll say in that vision, I don't really mean it, and if I lash out I will regret it immediately. Please, remember that anger can really cloud the mind, and that I would never hurt you intentionally, be it with words or actions."

"I-…" Hiccup swallowed the anxiety those words brought him. He too knew that the onscreen Stoick was about to explode in his anger, but hearing it from his father, hearing his father say he feared his future self could and probably would go too far, really didn't help ease his worries. "I know, Dad… I-I'll keep it in mind."

Stoick patted his shoulder before gently pushing him back towards Toothless and the teens. "Go sit with you friends. I'm afraid that in this case, you might need them more than you do me. I cannot promise my words would be of any use, when I or rather the future me is the one to hurt you in the first place."

Hiccup nodded tensely and went back to sit against Toothless's side. Astrid put a hand on his arm and Fishlegs one on his shoulder, as a show of support. Surprisingly, Snotlout was the one who actually managed to help him the most, "Come on, Hiccup, Khor said you're the hero, it's not like you can mess up something that's already bound to happen."

Well, Snotlout was still Snotlout, after all…

Despite the blunt rudeness of his words, and the following disapproving nudge-punch from Astrid, Hiccup found himself straightening at those words. Snotlout was right. One way or the other, he was the hero, or so Khor had said. Even if something bad did happen, it would happen at the end of the war, not now.

Khor smiled at the sight. Hiccup and Snotlout's friendship was one he really appreciated. Sure, Hiccup and Astrid were great friends before they were engaged too, but she and Fishlegs were in their own ways similar to Hiccup – smart, caring and supportive. Snotlout was the opposite, and even then he and Hiccup not only were good friends, but actually respected each other… after they solved some of their issues, of course.

He doubted Hiccup would ever really forget about that water spout… Or later on, the near theft of his betrothal gift to Astrid… or a lot of other things, really. He just forgave him, but never really forgot.

**"They've killed ****_hundreds_**** of us!" Stoick shouts, furious and scowling at the much, much, much smaller male.**

**"And we've killed ****_thousands_**** of them!" Hiccup shouts back, allowing himself a moment of anger as he glares defiantly at his father. His sudden backbone seems to surprise Stoick, who straightens up and turns around, resigned and frustrated that the boy couldn't understand what he was trying to tell him. "They're just defending themselves, that's all!"**

**Hiccup then continues as Stoick begins to pace in front of him, frustrated, "They raid us because they have to! If they don't bring enough food back, they'll be eaten themselves!" The Chief doesn't even seem to be listening, which is proven wrong once Hiccup speaks again, "There's something else on their island, dad. It's- It's a dragon like-"**

**His interest piqued, Stoick realises what Hiccup has just said. "Their island?" he repeats, first curious, then angrily suspicious. "So you've been to the Nest…"**

"Oh in the name of Odin why did you have to mention the Nest?" wailed Fishlegs, hiding his face into his hands and then peeking from his fingers.

"It's probably because I'm trying to tell him about the Queen and trying to convince him that attacking the Nest will only get us all killed," sighed Hiccup. He had been spared of needing to do that because his father had been able to see it for himself, but yeah, in the 'movie' he had to tell him at some point. "And while I'm at it, might've as well try to distract him from his anger and from Toothless."

"Thanks Hiccup, but I'm not sure how good of an idea that is," commented the dragon, worried that his proclaimed brother (Dagur would throw a fit) might do something he might regret later. He was terrible at lying and Stoick wouldn't understand just how horrible the whole truth was. The big man would probably underestimate the Queen and double his efforts to find the Nest, thinking that if they could kill the Queen, then the dragons would leave.

Which was correct, but also impossible.

"Yeah, well, it's only idea I have, and I don't see any of you guys there, so I guess I'll have to go with my plan," Hiccup replied a tad snappily, annoyed by their critique. Yeah, it was so easy to criticize when they could see it from an outside perspective and didn't have a very angry and intimidating Chief furious at them and pacing right in front of them, as if trying to decide what punishment to dish out.

**As if realizing only then that his father, being… well… his father, would never listen, Hiccup starts to backtrack. "Uh… did I say Nest?"**

"No, but you said 'their island', which is just as bad!" Ruffnut stated cheerfully.

"Thank you, Ruff, for your… helpful… input," the boy replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes when she said he was welcome.

**"How did you find it?" asks Stoick, advancing on him menacingly.**

**"What? No… I didn't… Toothless did… only a ****_dragon_**** can find the island…" replies Hiccup, trying to convince Stoick that reaching the Nest is impossible unless one could ride a dragon.**

**Unfortunately, Stoick decides just then to show that Hiccup's not the only one who can come up with odd but bright ideas and looks inspired for a second.**

"Uh-oh…" winced Gobber. "He's gonna tie that dragon to a ship and use him to lead us to the Nest…"

"What?!" all the teens and some of the dragons shouted.

"Who would ever do that?!" exclaimed Fishlegs.

"How did he think of that?!" Astrid chimed in as well.

"Is anyone else surprised by the fact that _Stoick the Vast_, notorious dragon killer and dragon hater, who has a _Night Fury_ trapped in his Arena, just had an idea regarding him that did _not_ involve violently and bloodily killing him in front of the entire village?" Snotlout spoke up, making Stoick and Hiccup wince, while Astrid, Toothless and Fishlegs deadpanned at him. Many others, however, couldn't help but agree with the stocky boy. "I mean, come on, seriously? He chooses _now_ of all times to get his mind out of _kill dragons kill dragons kill dragons_, just in time to get an idea that will doom us all?"

"Killing dragons isn't _all_ I think about!" Stoick defended himself, unknowingly semi-quoting Hiccup from a few months in the future.

Every single Viking gave him a 'seriously?' look.

"I'm the Chief! I think about the wellbeing of my people as well!" he protested.

"_Looks like you missed one, or a few,_" Toothless mumbled under his breath, looking at Hiccup and ten at the other teens. His earlier point still stood.

**"Oh, no, no, Dad, no!" Hiccup again tries to dissuade him, instantly knowing that whatever he's planning, it wouldn't be good nor would it end well. Though honestly nothing that has anything to do with the Queen could really end well. "It's not what you're thinking, you don't know what you're up against! It's like nothing you've ever seen!"**

**Stoick ignores him and a determined look comes on his face. He lets out a mix between a sigh and a grunt of exasperation before he starts to walk toward the door, completely ignoring his son, still beside him and trying to stop him.**

Toothless growled. How dare he ignore his son like that? Especially when he was actually telling him _more_ about the Nest and its Queen! One would think that being obsessed as he was with the Nest and destroying it, Stoick would actually stop and grind Hiccup for details until he knew _everything_ he could about it. Instead, the dumb idiot was trying to rush in recklessly and without any sort of foreknowledge about what he was gonna encounter. Hell, he probably blocked out Hiccup's rambling and would not even expect for a Queen to be there!

Khor winced. Toothless now didn't like Stoick ignoring Hiccup… soon he would probably think it would've been better if he had ignored him all the way…

Hiccup winced, to which Stoick sent him what he hoped was a reassuring look. "Remember what I told you, son," he said, trying to ease his worry, or at least his tension.

The boy nodded jerkily, not really feeling better but at least more in control. "Y-Yeah… Anger can make people do v-very stupid stuff…" he agreed. _'Like trying to kill Toothless…'_ he bitterly added in his mind.

**"Dad, please!" Hiccup gets pushed aside when Stoick quite simply stomps toward the door, uncaring of the boy's presence. The big man is snorting like a bull about to charge, which is a clear indication of his current mood. "I promise you you can't win this one!"**

**Boy is he right…**

**Hiccup sighs in frustration and exasperation when his father doesn't even seem to have heard him. "Dad, no…" As a last resort, Hiccup runs forwards and grabs one of the man's arms, which alone is bigger than the boy himself. Then he puts everything he had into one last shout.**

**"****_For once in your life would you please just LISTEN TO ME?!_****"**

Hiccup bit his lip before he felt a comforting hand on his shoulder. He didn't turn and he couldn't tell through shirt and fur who it was, but he appreciated it nonetheless. Letting _everyone_ hear and see him so on his last legs made him feel awful. There were moments of weakness no one but the closest of relatives and friends could know about.

Toothless growled lowly as he glared at the screen. _'Watch your mouth, human, and choose your words very carefully…'_

Stoick looked like he'd taken a painful hit from a mace. That was his fault. That wasn't the future nor it was something he'd done out of anger. That was something he'd done and kept doing over the years, never truly listening to his son and always overriding his opinions with his own. Taking his differences as mere temporary insecurities and telling him to Viking up, or dismissing his skill and his intelligence and all his other good qualities simply because they didn't fit in the picture of the perfect Viking son he had. And since complaints or protests didn't fit that picture, he'd blocked them out.

_'I have failed you, son. I'm sorry. I swear, I will make this up to you…'_

Khor winced again. The protection against harm would really come in handy soon. He then frowned. There was something about the magic protection that he felt he should remember, but for the life of his he couldn't recall what…

**Stoick grunts and pushes him off, tossing him on the floor. Hiccup lands on his butt and sits up, shocked by the shove.**

**Stoick slowly turns around when he's almost at the door, looking down at him with anger, disappointment and betrayal. "You've thrown your lot in with them…" he spokes up, eerily calm compared to his earlier tirade. He then straightens as he delivers his final judgement. "You're not a Viking…"**

**Hiccup is shown panting on the floor with hurt in his eyes.**

**Stoick shakes his head and turns around to leave as he adds, his voice breaking, "You're not my son…"**

All sound in the room ceased, which was probably only worsening the situation. No one could quite believe the words they'd just heard. Especially after hearing Toothless talk about how much Hiccup had wanted to earn his father's approval, those words just sounded too cruel to be true.

Hiccup took a deep, shuddering breath, and quietly repeated to himself that they were just words spoken out of anger, and that his father didn't mean any of it. That if anything, even while he was so furious, his father's voice had still wavered, full of heartbreak so powerful to show through even his anger. _'Dad loves me more than anything in the world. He's just really, really bad at showing it.'_

However, that thought wasn't shared by many others in the audience. For the first time ever, all of the other teens had more or less the same expression, though with different levels of intensity: all of them were livid. Astrid was the closest to Hiccup out of all of them, Fishlegs was probably right behind her. Snotlout could really relate, but even his crappy father would never disown him, especially not so callously. And the twins… they cared about Hiccup. He was actually fun to hang around with, not to mention he had actually given them a chance instead of labelling them as a lost cause and move on.

Stoick, meanwhile, was absolutely devastated. He'd known he would say something incredibly stupid and hurtful, but he'd never thought he'd go _that_ far! Especially because disowning his son was the _last_ thing he wanted to do! _'Hiccup… no matter what, no matter what happens… you're still my son. You're still my son…'_

Toothless, instead, decided he'd heard enough. Besides, there was a magical barrier that prevented any of them from dying, right? So Hiccup couldn't even complain when he torched Stoick! He stood up, shrugged off the teens, and began to stalk toward the grieving Chief who, in his devastation, didn't even see him move.

The dragon's eyes were as narrow as they could get as he replayed the scene in his mind, getting madder and madder.

His whole life, Hiccup had tried to get his father's approval in every way he could…

And that man…

That _bastard_…

Had just spat on all his efforts, and cast him out of the family.

Hiccup, the kindest, smartest living being he'd ever met. The same one who decided he didn't want to fight and instead found a way to befriend him, even if at first he didn't cooperate. The same one who had given him his flight back, spending whole nights working on his new tail even though it was a project even he thought was doomed to fail at first, because a ripped tail could never be fixed.

And Stoick had just caused him more pain that a plasma blast ever could.

His vision was red. He was vaguely aware of the pounding in his ears as he stalked toward the man who had single-handedly ruined his brother's life. He heard the echoes of someone calling his name, but they were so, so, so far away.

The man was close now – he couldn't miss.

He reared back his head and gathered the gas in his mouth. It wouldn't kill him anyway – just show him just how angry he actually was.

The gas was ready, all he needed was-

Through the red haze that covered his vision, Toothless saw Hiccup put himself between him and Stoick. The dragon panicked. He couldn't hold his fire now, it was too late.

The gas ignited.

He bit down on the blast, not caring if it blew up in his own mouth, and tried to turn away, but a small plasma shot still managed to escape his jaws in time, and exploded near Hiccup's feet.

The explosion sent him flying for a few feet.

"NO!" In his horror, Toothless couldn't recognize the owner of the voice. His focus was on the small figure who laid on the floor, his clothes singed

Only then he remembered that Khor had dispelled the magic protection to allow Astrid to punch Snotlout. All for that little moment of comedy.

And now Hiccup wasn't moving any more.


	13. It's a Mess

**_Hello everyone! Long wait, I know. But I had to update two other stories, and I'm creating a whole new videogame from scratch to add to my portfolio as Videogame Narrative Designer. I know, not an excuse for a month and more of absence, but it's life. My twin is being so damn annoying, and I'm trying to be nice here, and I'm a bit stressed because of the lockdown. One would think that being always home would give me MORE time to write but guess what? Nope!_**

**_Anyway, here is the chapter, enjoy!_**

That couldn't be it, Snotlout told himself. It just couldn't. There was no way Hiccup Haddock, the boy he'd watched get up from just about anything, was… No, it was impossible. Sure, he was hurt, but he would get back up, complain about his bad luck and then crawl back to where he was sitting earlier, right? That's how Hiccup worked.

Yeah, that was it, he was just hurt. Of course he was – Lord Khor was a messenger from Odin or something like that, so he could obviously bring people back from the dead, right? And besides, he said they could only hurt people if they did something in the hall, so that didn't count, right? Besides, he thought after glancing at the one who'd brought them there, Khor looked shocked, but that was it. Had it been any worse, he would've been horrified! So there was no way Hiccup was dead, right?

The twins and Fishlegs, usually never in agreement due to the huge gap between their intellect levels, were oddly acting in the same way. All three of them were just staring at the fallen form of the scrawny little Viking who'd kind of become their friend in all of that, not sure what to think. Shock, certainly, but it was a shock so great they couldn't really much else. Which was odd because they should've been sad, but they just were… waiting. Waiting for something else to happen and confirm or deny their fears.

Of the teens, Astrid was taking it worse. Not because she cared about him exponentially more than the others, but because as opposite to them, she wasn't in shock. Or, if she had been, she wasn't any more. Now she was feeling dread. A dread somewhat lessened by the fact that the blast hadn't been extremely powerful, and it hadn't been a direct hit, but dread nonetheless. Hiccup may have been tougher in hide than she'd initially thought, especially after all those falls off of Toothless, but an explosion was dangerous for anyone, no matter how resistant they could be. Especially one from a Night Fury.

Gobber was speechless. He'd seen a lot of messed up stuff in his life – the loss of two of his limbs was high on that list – but he'd never thought he'd survive his own apprentice, who was like a nephew to him. Or a son, at times, especially whenever Gobber was teaching him about smithing and forging. A little voice in the back of his head told him that Hiccup wasn't dead, and that he'd survived worse explosions of his own making in the forge, but still he couldn't rid himself of the worry.

Toothless was taking it much, _much_ worse. Despite knowing better than most that Hiccup wasn't as weak as everyone thought he was, he also knew that he still wasn't exactly on par with most Vikings, and that had been a powerful blast. One that he'd meant for Stoick and bit on when Hiccup stood between the two, but a strong blast nonetheless. And now Hiccup wasn't moving any more.

Stoick knew he couldn't take much more before his heart gave up. Perhaps not literally, but metaphorically. He'd not only just seen himself disown his son, but now said son had just taken a blast meant for him. Perhaps not a fully-powered one, but not a harmless one either. And that wasn't even his inner mother hen talking. He hadn't even had the time to apologize…

"H-Hiccup?" Gobber called out, the shock breaking his voice a little.

…

"The Gods hate me…"

Everyone in the room gasped or held their breath as the shaken, burnt and still slightly steaming boy sat up, looking very disoriented. He tried to bring up a hand to his head, but removing that support almost costed him his balance. Toothless dove forward to catch him before he could fall again. "Thanks, bud…"

"Hiccup!" The poor, singed boy startled at the thunderous sound of his name being called by hundreds of voices at the same time. He shrank by instinct before remembering what had just happened, and adopted a grimace instead.

"H-Hey, guys…" he responded weakly, glancing around. Aside from Toothless, who was right beside him, everyone else was staring at him in extreme worry. A small, dumb part of him was pleased that they'd finally openly showed some concern for him, but a much bigger and smarter part insisted on defusing the situation before his father killed him with a hug. "W-Well, I guess this proves Khor _did_ make us immortals, right?"

"Hiccup!" Said boy winced when his father came rushing in with the speed of a Night Fury, scooping him up in a hug that could've squashed a Gronckle into a pancake.

He tried to wheeze out some kind of reassurance, or perhaps a protest for his most likely broken ribs, but to be honest he couldn't get out a word. Not even a sound. He was actually turning a bit blue, and if one were to listen closely, they would hear the sound of bone cracking.

Fortunately, Toothless wanted to hug him as well, which meant that Stoick had to make room for the dragon as well. That gave him a split second of air before the two crushed him again. Idly, in the back of his oxygen-deprived mind, Hiccup noted with awe how Toothless had just mimicked Stoick's hug simply by observing. The rest of his mind worried about his quickly incoming death.

"Alright, that's enough, break it up everyone!" Khor's voice rang out before the three were forcefully separated. Hiccup took a few deep breaths, still trying not to pass out. "Sorry for interrupting but the kid was losing consciousness."

Hiccup looked around… as soon as he got some oxygen in his lungs, that is. Everyone was looking at him with joy and relief… which was really, _really_ weird. Vikings never showed their soft sides like that, and dragons… well, they didn't have the most expressive of faces, Toothless notwithstanding. "So… what did I miss?"

He met Astrid's gaze, and winced when her relieved smile turned into a scowl. That wasn't good – at all. The Shieldmaiden to be stalked toward him with a storm brewing behind her eyes, which did nothing to ease his worries. And worse still, Toothless wasn't even stepping in – did that mean he thought he deserved whatever pain Astrid was surely about to deliver as punishment for his reckless action?

His fears came true the moment she reached him and socked him in the arm – hard, really hard. Hard enough to leave a bruise, and to make Snotlout wince in sympathy. Hiccup grabbed his hurting forearm with his left hand, shying away from Ms Violence Incarnated. "That's for scaring me," was all the explanation he got from the angry girl.

"Wh-What?! What did I do?!" he protested! _'Not that I blame Toothless, but seriously, what did I do?! I was the one who got blasted, not the other way around!'_

Astrid then grabbed his shirt and Hiccup prepared himself for an even harder hit. After all, why would she ever grab his shirt, if not to hold him still while she winded up a punch that would knock him back out?

And then she kissed him.

That wasn't clear enough. _She __**kissed**__ him_. _Astrid Hofferson_ had just _kissed_ him. Still not clear enough. But honestly, he had other things to think about.

For example he was fairly certain that blocking out the entire world was a sign of incoming loss of consciousness, except that he was perfectly awake (damn, if that was all just a dream he'd seriously kill somebody) and that he wasn't going to faint and miss that kiss even if the world were to be ending.

Second, he was also sure that the dragon fire going off in the back of his mind was a symptom of insanity, but as long as it wasn't like the twins', he'd take insane and kissing Astrid over sane and not kissing her any day of the week, month or year.

Unfortunately, the kiss ended soon.

_Far_ too soon for his liking, but hey, since when he had a say in what Astrid did?

"And I suppose that could be for not actually dying," she added, a tad shy. Hadn't he already seen her shyer side after their future accidental visit to the Nest, he wouldn't been shocked. Not to say he wasn't now, of course, but he had always been great at adaptation.

_'If this is how the future goes, then I love this future,'_ he thought to himself, smiling dazedly.

"Hiccup…" He shook himself and turned around at the sound of his father's voice, and couldn't help but be shocked.

Stoick the Vast, the prideful Chief of the Hooligan tribe was… kneeling down in front of him? Not as in bowing, of course, his father would never bow in front of anyone, but lowering himself to his level. And that definitely shocked him. His whole life, it had been the other way around, Hiccup trying to reach his level and failing, and now he was kneeling right in front of him?

"Uhh… Dad?" he called out hesitantly. That was new, and he was really feeling like a fish out of the water.

"I'm sorry, son." The words warmed him, and turned his shocked expression into a small smile. Before he could interrupt, however, the man continued, "I'm sorry for what the future showed, and I'm sorry for… for everything. I know you already know, but I needed to say this. Hiccup, you're the best son I could've ever asked for, not because of grand achievements or skill, but because you're my son." Stoick grabbed him by the shoulders and looked straight in his shocked eyes. "I was blind, and a fool, for years and years. I will make it up to you, somehow, but for now know this – there is nothing you could do to make me proud, because I'm already as proud as can be."

Hiccup smiled and wiped away a tear before hugging his father. "Thank you, Dad. That means the world to me."

"Hey, aren't you forgetting someone?" Toothless's pissed voice ruined the moment, and for a second Meatlug seriously considered clubbing him on the head with her tail for that.

Hiccup laughed at his dragon's jealousy and gave him a hug as well.

"I'm sorry too, Hiccup," he felt the dragon rumble in the embrace. "I shouldn't have lost my temper like that. I guess in the end, I'm no better than them. I hurt you."

"Well, sure you singed me a little, but let's not go that far yet, okay? It was an accident, you didn't mean to do it," Hiccup replied. _'Which is more than I can say for a lot of them…'_ he added silently, glancing at the Berkians. While he did still love his people, he loved them knowing both sides of the coin, not just the bright parts of life on Berk (which we admittedly very very few). Toothless was just the brother with only bright parts.

Toothless rumbled again, this time just in agreement, without talking. Somehow, he felt not talking made it more fitting. They didn't need to magically speak the same language to understand each other.

"Wait, so does that mean he's not dead?" Tuffnut asked out loud, staring with a quizzical frown at the still alive and kicking (not so much of the second) Hiccup Haddock. "Then why did we get all sad and worried?"

"Genetic defect, we must have leaky lacrimal ducts," Ruffnut explained, wiping her eyes with a solemn expression.

Snotlout finally released the sigh he'd been holding and glanced at the two twidiots. "You guys are dumb."

"Oh thank Thor you're okay," Fishlegs sighed/cheered, feeling light-headed for the sudden relief.

"Hiccup, don't scare me like that, I'll get grey hair!" Gobber protested, ignoring the fact that one, he already had grey hair and two, he didn't have that many hair anyway.

Hiccup chuckled at that. "Don't worry Gobber, I don't plan on almost dying again anytime soon."

Khor spat out the orange juice he'd been drinking, then passed it off as a sudden cough when everyone glanced at him. _'That'd be hilarious, if it wasn't so damn sad. He does end up in quite a lot of risky situations…'_

"Soo…" their host drawled as soon as he got the juice out of his throat (though unfortunately not out of his shirt). "Should we continue with the movie?"

"Yes, great idea!" Tuffnut exclaimed before looking confused. "Wait, what were we watching again?"

"The future, you muttonhead," grumbled Snotlout, moving aside a bit to let Hiccup, Astrid and Toothless sit down again. Then he moved even further when Stoick moved to sit beside Hiccup, squashing him between father and (girl)friend.

"Yay!" Ruffnut exclaimed, sitting down. "Back to the future!"

The rest of the Vikings, as well as the dragons who had been silently watching the whole exchange, quickly sat down so that the 'movie' could start once again.

**The view switches to Hiccup's face, who looks like he's struggling to accept what Stoick just said.**

**His no-longer-father turns and stalks out of the hall, slamming the door behind him, shouting "Ready the ships!" to his men.**

**The door doesn't close, though, and remains ajar, letting a bit of light in. Hiccup is still panting slightly from his shouting, but after seeing his father walk away, he seems to realize it all really happened, and closes his eyes with a resigned expression.**

Stoick closed his eyes as well. His words had just hurt his son more than that Nightmare ever could. And it had been his words again, albeit other words, that had frightened the Nightmare into attacking Hiccup. Had he kept his damn mouth shut, nothing bad would've happened.

On the other side of Hiccup (and Astrid), Toothless frowned. He still hated how Stoick had just disowned the boy, but after accidentally injuring what he cared for the most in the world (who was also basically all he had) in a moment of anger, he could understand that Stoick wasn't to blame. His anger had dictated his words.

Which wasn't a complete excuse, but which at least was better than him actually meaning to disown his son.

Snotlout bit his lip, looking at the screen intently. He could relate to Hiccup, he really could. Spitelout's expectations for him were every bit as high as Stoick's standards were for Hiccup. Both pretty much unreachable. Now that his… friend? No-longer-enemy? He liked the first better. Now that his friend had just been disowned, there was only one thing Snotlout wanted to see.

He wanted to see how Hiccup would deal with it, so that he could learn to deal with his father's disappointment. Besides, he would always be a disappointment to Spitelout – the man was so full of himself that he made Snotlout look humble. Nothing could ever satisfy his ever-growing demands. So really, all he needed was to learn how to cope with it.

Fishlegs and the twins were silent, mostly out of respect since they had no idea how Hiccup was feeling, and they felt it wouldn't be right to say something in a moment like that.

Astrid was feeling conflicted. On one hand, she shared Fishlegs and the twins' feelings, on the other, it didn't sit right with her to just leave Hiccup be on his own.

But then she glanced at the boy himself, sandwiched between his father, her and his dragon, and decided to trust Fate a little and let him be. He was stronger than most gave him credit for. He didn't need her to coddle him.

**Outside the ajar door, Stoick stops and walks while staring at the ground. Once he realizes what he's done, he raises his head with a wide-eyed, heartbroken expression. The great Chief stumbles and steps back, overwhelmed as his emotions get the best of him for a moment, before he takes a hold of himself and continues to walk away with a sorrowful expression on his face.**

Toothless lowered his head.

He'd been oh so foolish to think that Stoick actually meant those words. He'd been foolish and quick to condemn his actions without even taking the time to think about how those words could've impacted Stoick himself. Obviously, he still cared for Hiccup a lot more than he cared for Stoick, but that didn't mean he cared not for the large man.

Stoick just sighed. Heartbreak sounded like a good way to put it. That would be hands-down the worst mistake of his life. But in a way, he was glad he was that, because now that he knew what was gonna happen, he wouldn't allow his emotions to rule his words again. In fact, all of that wouldn't even happen – he would just straight-out listen to Hiccup and trust him since the start, and nothing bad would happen in the first place.

Hiccup felt sad as he looked at his father's devastated expression, knowing in some (not-so-)indirect way, he was responsible for that. True, he hadn't asked to be interrogated nor had he asked for the near-death situation back in the arena, but he'd still been the one to betray his father's trust in him by allying himself with their sworn enemy, no matter how much of a misunderstanding the entire war was. And who knows, maybe, had he told his father earlier, it would've gone differently. Perhaps better – at least they wouldn't have found Toothless! That would've been worth it all by itself. He couldn't bear to think his dragon had been captured because of him.

As tactless as it might've appeared, few others were concerned by the Chief's show of emotions. Gobber knew him well, and Spitelout was his blood-brother, so both of them were sympathetic towards the giant red-bearded man. Others, like Mulch or Bucket, may not have been close to him nor very smart, but they had a bit more social awareness than the others and could read the clear pain on the Chief's face.

Others, like for example the teens, were kind of thinking he deserved it. Not with malice, of course, but he _had_ disowned Hiccup, so a little heartbreak was more than called for.

**Some Vikings are shown pushing the dragon head decoration of a ship down a wooden ramp, with other Vikings opening a wooden gate for them. Music builds up as the view expands to show that many more pieces for the repairs of the ships are being brought down the ramps and to the docks, where many ships are already waiting to set sail.**

**On the wooden ramps, there is a constant back and forth of Vikings, preparing for war.**

**The view keeps expanding to show the docks and the two dozens ships anchored, each with differently coloured sails and decorated with shields and a dragon head on the front.**

**A statue of a giant snake/snake-like dragon with a stone basin in its jaws and a catapult guard the two sides of the docks' entrance.**

"You know, speaking of the docks' defences, isn't it weird that the Outcasts haven't attacked for months?" Gobber wondered out loud, looking at Stoick. "Normally they get at least seen every week or two."

"Now that you mention it, they have been very quiet recently. Perhaps they are too busy dealing with dragon raids of their own." Stoick looked at the dragons, who just shrugged.

"Probably. We don't know which island you're talking about, but yeah Berk isn't our only target, unfortunately," admitted Flick, the left head of a Zippleback called Flick and Bernard. The second had changed his name after being mistaken for its other half one too many times. Originally, its name was Slick.

"Well, as long as they are off our back, I-I'd say that's good news," commented Fishlegs, smiling awkwardly to try and stop the conversation from going on too much. He wanted to see the future, dammit!

"You don't think?" Snotlout mumbled sarcastically.

**The view changes to a man at the docks throwing a pile of weapons to another on a ship, who then throws it up in the air, which then landed on the camera, presumably meaning the landed on the ship.**

Tuffnut jumped back. "Hey, watch it, pal!"

"It's in the stupid wall, you idiot!" Snotlout growled, rolling his eyes at the twins' stupidity – especially Tuff's, since he _was_ the dumbest of the two.

**Ropes are shown being pulled from both sides before a chained and trapped Toothless is shown muzzled but still struggling to get out. Two Vikings attack a wooden muzzle to his snout, to prevent him even more from opening his mouth. Despite that, he still tries to squirm out of his constraints.**

Toothless's ear fins lowered when he saw the condition he was in. That was bad, it was oh so horribly bad. Chained like he was, he had no way of protecting Hiccup. Worse still, he knew the Vikings were going to get themselves slaughtered, and that Hiccup would probably try to pull some hazardous stunt to save him. As unfit for battle as the boy was, he would never give up on him without a fight, metaphorical or literal. And that could get him killed.

Hiccup had a similar, but inverted, train of thoughts. He was _extremely_ worried, and not about himself. His best friend and his father, the two beings he cared the most in the world, were about to sail off to their deaths, and there was nothing he could do about it. He _really_ doubted he could just waltz in, ask to get his dragon back, and then walk out with nonchalance.

Stoick was worried too. _'I really messed up this time, didn't I? Or well, I will mess up.'_ He shook his head. After lecturing and scolding Hiccup so many times for his shortcomings, he went and screwed everything up. Like father like son, apparently.

Astrid was mainly worried about her parents, who were obviously going to go to the Nest with the others. She was also scared because that was her village, and most of it was going on a suicide mission against something that just couldn't be killed by waving a sword at it. And a part of her, a surprisingly big part of her, feared what was gonna happen to Hiccup and Toothless… mainly Hiccup, no offence to the dragon.

Hiccup would either completely give up, or try something stupid. Honestly, she was more afraid of the first. She couldn't picture Hiccup giving up. He hadn't given up on his father for years and years, he just couldn't give up now. Not when his entire village was at stake.

But perhaps that would be the final nail in the coffin. Perhaps he would blame himself for everything, and give up thinking he had led his people to their deaths because he hadn't been able to stop them. And in that case, she had to do something. She just hoped that her future self, who didn't know Hiccup as well as she did (the difference wasn't all that much, but it was there), would think the same and help him when he needed her. She was sure he could come up with a way to save everyone, but for now someone had to save him from himself.

_Was it bad she wanted to be that someone? That she wanted him to lean on her and turn to her when he needed help? That she wanted to be there for him through thick and thin, to see him at his highs and his lows, and help him rise back up? That she wanted to have an important part in his life?_

The silence was then broken… unfortunately, not for the best.

"That looks pretty bad," Gobber commented nonchalantly, as if they weren't about to watch themselves getting roasted and eaten by a giant evil dragon.

He got the glares he deserved for making such a comment.

"No, how did you guess?" Snotlout snorted derisively. "Was it because of the gigantic monstrous Dragon Queen waiting at the Nest, ready to kill you all as soon as you arrive?"

"You keep that mouth shut, lad!" Gobber waved his hook at him threateningly. "I swear, Hiccup's sarcasm is contagious!"

"No duh," the Jorgenson boy replied, unfazed by the threat until he was bashed on the head by Gobber's hook. "Ow! Hey!"

"Respect your elders!" the smith lectured cheekily before turning back to the 'movie', leaving Snotlout to sulk.

**An old woman, Gothi and two kids are watching from the ramps. Noticing how scared the kids seem, Gothi reaches out and brings them closer to her to reassure them.**

"Why are you scared, lad?" the father of the blond boy onscreen asked, turning to his son.

"Because you're going to the Nest…" the child replied, looking down. "I'm scared you won't come back…"

"Don't worry, everything's gonna be fine," the man replied, ruffling his hair. "I'm a big, strong Viking. It takes more than that to kill me."

Stoick and Hiccup unknowingly had the same sad expression as they watched the scene between the two unfold. How many times had someone said that to their children, but never returned? It was a part of life, but one they loathed. Hiccup may have hated violence while Stoick accepted as his go-to method of getting things done, but both loved their village and hated seeing their people hurt, or even worse killed.

"Hey, am I the only one who thinks that Gothi looks blonde in this light?" Ruffnut spoke up, squinting at the screen.

"Could she be…" Tuffnut's eyes widened as the two completed the sentence together. "A Thorston ancestor?!"

Gothi rolled her eyes before hitting Gobber with her stick to get his attention and scribbling something.

"Ah… ah-ah… She says she's always had yak hair before getting old," he translated before getting another bonk on the head. "Oh! Black hair! She's always had black hair."

**A Viking pulls up a crane to lift Toothless's cage and bring it on the ship, the dragon struggling all along.**

**Behind the dragon, standing over a wooden ramp, Hiccup watches the scene from afar, solemn and sad.**

**Toothless is moved onto a ship, where two Vikings make sure the wooden platform he's caged in lands smoothly. Stoick jumps aboard. "Set sail! We head for Helheim's Gate," he commands, glaring around at the men.**

Stoick felt a stab of guilt at the scene. The fact that he clearly believed to be in the right just made everything worse. It proved that no matter how sure he was of something, he could never really know if it was right or not. And in this case, his false belief could get a lot of people killed.

Most of the dragons didn't dare meeting Toothless's eyes. They were ashamed to say, they were relieved they weren't in that situation. They knew they could always flee the Nest once the Queen got angry, but the Night Fury couldn't.

The Deadly Nadder who would later be named Stormfly stepped closer to the bunch of Vikings splayed over the black dragon with the human Night Fury, and nudged Toothless's neck with her beaked snout.

Toothless looked up, puzzlement clear in his eyes and in the way he inclined his head to the side. She was kinda envious he could be that expressive, to be honest. Nevertheless, she hadn't come closer to be envious, but to reassure. "I'm sure your Night Fury will find a way to save you even without wings."

"That's what I'm afraid of, that he'll get himself in an even bigger mess than it already is…" grumbled the dragon, brows lowering in a frown directed to the brown-haired boy beside him. "At times, he's amazingly smart. At others, he's dumber than a Terrible Terror."

"Hey!" protested Hiccup.

"Hey!" protested the Terrible Terrors.

Stormfly shrugged. "Maybe things will go well."

Toothless gave her a look.

She ignored it.

"The only thing I can take comfort in, is the fact that it's gonna be hard for Hiccup to get to me," Toothless continued grumpily.

"We'll see," the boy in question muttered under his breath.

**He sees something behind him and widens his eyes, looking up.**

**Hiccup is shown again, still watching them from the ramp, without saying a word.**

**Stoick frowns, puts his hands on his hips in defiance, and turns around to oversee the rest of the preparations. He stalks next to Toothless, who glares at him, before leaning down to address the dragon with venom in his voice. "Lead us home, ****_devil._****"**

While Hiccup was definitely not happy with the insult, nor with the fact his father had completely ignored his presence and what it meant, he let his anger slide off of him. Getting angry was pointless, if he couldn't do something about it.

**Toothless glares at him for a second more before lowering his head in defeat.**

**The ships set sail, moving away from the docks as the view rises and moves behind Hiccup to show the boy looking at the leaving fleet. The scene fades to show all the ships gone and the horizon clear, but the boy still hasn't moved.**

"Woah, where did the ships go?" Tuffnut asked before being quickly and violently silenced by his twin.

**View switches to Hiccup's front, who is wearing a tired and resigned expression. Astrid is behind him, looking at him with worry.**

_'Yes!'_ Astrid cheered, but just for a second. It still depended on how her encouragement went.

_'No!'_ Toothless groaned. Now she would inspired him to do something stupid, and Hiccup would find a way to go and save him. And then everyone would die thanks to the Blood Tyrant.

**She walks closer until she's by his side, but he turns slightly away to avoid looking at her. The two of them are still facing the empty sea, with the large rocks forming a semi-circle around Berk's docks clearly visible in front of them.**

**"It's a mess," she states with a humourless chuckle, shaking her head.**

"You don't say?" Snotlout and Hiccup said in unison, looking at her with equally-raised eyebrows.

"Would you prefer me not talking to you at all?" Astrid countered, ignoring Snotlout for the moment.

Hiccup looked away with a pout. Of course he preferred if she talked to him, but that was different! That was just because he needed someone to support him. He would've still preferred if she hadn't started by pointing out just how bad the situation was.

**"You must feel horrible," Astrid continues her… uhhh… pep talk? Hiccup doesn't look very amused, even though she's not even being sarcastic at the moment. "You've lost everything. Your father, your tribe, your best friend…"**

Everyone stared at Astrid. Well, everyone but Gobber, who thought that was a pretty good pep talk, but everyone else did.

"What? Who knows what she… what I _will_ be thinking?" she replied defensively. True, thus far she was really going horrible, but maybe it was one of those pep talks that got better in their second half.

**"Thank you for summing that up," Hiccup replies sarcastically, not looking at her as he frowns in annoyance.**

**Seriously, was she trying to make him feel even worse?**

"Probably," Snotlout commented, munching on some mutton and receiving stares because of that. "What? Did you all forgot Khor said we can ask the Gods for food and they'll summon it?"

"That's not why we were staring at you, Snotlout," Fishlegs sighed, annoyed by his obliviousness. _'No wonder he still hasn't learned that Astrid doesn't like him.'_

Yeah, no wonder…

**There is a moment of silence. Seems like Astrid is done with her 'encouraging' words.**

**Then Hiccup breaks that silence.**

**"Why couldn't I have killed that dragon when I found him in the woods…" he mutters to himself, frowning. "It would've been better, for everyone."**

"I'm sorry, you mean better for everyone but the Night Fury!" Mother Boulder, an old and scarred Gronckle with a hell of a grudge against humans. She hadn't spoken up until now because she hadn't felt the need to – the Vikings were just being Vikings and the dragons were just being dragons. The little friendship between the Night Fury and the Viking boy was just logical – the Night Fury needed the boy to fly away. It was for survival. As much as she loathed to say it, without the boy the Night Fury might've never gotten out of that cove.

But hearing that same boy talking so callously about killing the dragon he himself called his best friend really irked her. Not that she believed that boy to be any different from the other Vikings, of course, it was just the sheer cheek of talking about murder as the better alternative just because he hadn't gotten what he wanted. Boo-hoo, he couldn't get his father to listen, so now he regrets not killing the Night Fury. Pathetic.

"Because honestly, I don't see why the Night Fury would be happy to be dead!" she continued, earning some annoyed glances from the dragons as well as some agreements.

"That's because I'm gonna die anyway, and I'm bringing all those people with me," Toothless growled, rolling his eyes at the Gronckle's remark. "Had he just killed me, at least his people would've been spared."

Mother Gronckle grumbled. "And why should we care? They've never cared about us!"

"That's not an excuse to act so cruelly," Meatlug spoke up, annoyed as well. "And besides, it's not like we gave them much of an explanation when we took their food, destroyed their homes and killed their families."

"They shouldn't have remained if they weren't ready to suffer some losses," the older Gronckle sniffled indignantly, fully unaware of the hypocrisy of her words.

"Oh just shut up, old hag," Stormfly butted in, effectively ending the conversation. "I want to see how it goes."

**"Yep, the rest of us would've done it," Astrid agrees without missing a beat, not at all bothered to admit that she would've done it too. Then she gets thoughtful as she looks at him, confused. "So why didn't you?"**

**Hiccup remains silent, just looking down at the waves crashing against the docks.**

**Astrid turns to him fully, and repeats her question. "Why didn't you?"**

**Hiccup rolls his eyes with a non-committal shrug. "I don't know," he mutters tiredly, turning away from her. "I couldn't."**

**"That's not an answer," Astrid fires back, not at all satisfied with his vague response.**

"It really isn't," Fishlegs shyly agreed with the Astrid onscreen, looking at Hiccup.

The boy just shrugged. "I'm pretty sure I'm gonna say it sooner or later. Besides, it's not like I thought about it much… it was mostly an impulsive and instinctual reaction."

"Great, your instinctual reaction is to free the extremely dangerous and unknown dragon you just got super-angry by shooting it down," Snotlout drawled sarcastically. "That's just perfect!"

"Oh, shut up you, you wouldn't understand either way," Hiccup snapped, annoyed.

**"Why is this so important to you all of a sudden?" he asks, irritated by her stubbornness. He doesn't look at her, but he does turn his head in her direction and gesture to her with his right hand.**

**"Because I want to remember what you say right now."**

"Why would you even want to remember that?" Hiccup snorted, not understanding where Astrid was going with that.

She shrugged. "Because if everything goes well, it's gonna be a good addition to the stories that will be told in the future. I mean, the first dragon rider? That's gonna be quite the story."

"Wait a second… I'm the first Dragon Rider…" Hiccup smacked himself in the head. "Of course! Why didn't I think of that before?!"

"Probably because it was stupid and reckless and dangerous and your brain was trying to keep you away from danger, for once," Snotlout replied seamlessly, taking another chewy bite out of his mutton.

**"Oh, for the love of-" Hiccup cuts himself off, now ticked off, and turned around to look at her for the first time since the start of the conversation. "I was a coward! I was weak! I wouldn't kill a dragon!"**

Stoick, the teens, and a few dragons frowned. A coward and weak? The guy who freed a furious Night Fury and then helped it back into the sky? That just didn't sound right.

Stoick knew it was because of him and the village. The boy had always had a self-esteem so low it was drowning in the sea far below, but he'd always thought it was mostly him being humble or not acknowledging his own achievements, not straight-out self-loathing. It felt horrible to know that his own son saw himself in such an awful light because of him.

Astrid felt sorry, for more or less the same reasons, except she hadn't had that much of a hand in feeding his self-loathing.

Snotlout, if he had to be honest, wasn't feeling that much guilty. He was as much of a victim as Hiccup was, and it wasn't like Hiccup felt down because of him. Hiccup never cared what he said or did… well, as long as he didn't ruin his inventions, obviously.

Toothless didn't like hearing his self-proclaimed 'brother' (Dagur was probably having a seizure, somewhere) put himself down, but unfortunately he was used to it – he had his unhappy moments at the cove too, especially whenever one of the tails should've worked and didn't.

**"You said 'wouldn't', that time," Astrid points out.**

**"Oh, whatever! I wouldn't!" Hiccup exclaims, throwing his hands in the air in exasperation. "Three hundred years and I'm the first Viking who wouldn't kill a dragon!"**

**Astrid just stares at him, expectantly.**

**As if embarrassed by his admission, Hiccup turns away again, and the girl chooses that moment to speak up. "First to ride one, though."**

**Without turning, Hiccup's eyes widen as he looks at it from a different point of view.**

**"So…"**

Hiccup nodded slowly, as if he too had just realized it. Which wasn't true since he had already come to that conclusion. He just wanted to see if his future self would too – which he was pretty sure would.

**"I wouldn't kill him, because he looked as frightened as I was," Hiccup explains, slowly turning around again to face her with a serious expression as he remembers the moment. "I looked at him, and I saw myself."**

Gobber nodded. That sounded just about right. He didn't know the dragon even remotely as well as Hiccup did, but it was clear they were very close, and very similar. It was undeniable that Toothless had the same sense of humour Hiccup had, and behaved similarly as well. And it was undeniable that both were lonely, even though he couldn't fathom why a Night Fury would feel isolated from its flock.

Hiccup smiled and scratched Toothless's chin. "Yeah… isn't that right, bud?"

"Totally."

**"I bet he's really frightened now," Astrid comments, making him frown sadly. Then she leans in closer and adds in a slightly provoking tone, raising her eyebrows, "What are you gonna do about it?"**

"Save him, of course," Hiccup commented with a smile.

"No duh, how do you suppose you can do that?" snorted Snotlout.

"You'll like it, but not for long."

"How is that an answer!"

Fishlegs and Astrid, who both figured it out, respectively started to pray and grinned excitedly. The girl really wanted to get her own dragon, and she had read Hiccup correctly, she soon would.

Stoick suppressed a whimper. Oh Thor, please don't let his son do something stupid.

**Hiccup shrugs slightly before looking at her, slightly unsure. "Ehh, probably something stupid."**

Stoick audibly groaned, much to Gobber's amusement and Hiccup's embarrassment. Especially when Toothless echoed him and shook his head, glaring at his reckless friend.

"What? Would you prefer me not doing anything at all and letting you two and everyone else die?" Hiccup exclaimed, annoyed by the two's reaction.

"I'd much prefer if you were to do something _safe_, something _smart_ or something at least _normal_," rebutted his father. "Doing something _stupid_ just doesn't sound very reassuring."

Hiccup rolled his eyes at them both.

**"Good, but you've already done that," Astrid reminds him with a little smirk, waiting for his brain to get an idea.**

**Hiccup looks up, still shifting uncomfortably, before he comes up with an idea, and straightens up with a much more confident smile. He nods at her, raising his left index as if he was about to explain, but then instead turning away to run off. "Then… something crazy."**

**"That's more like it." She smiles fully and runs after him.**

Stoick groaned, but Toothless instead smiled. Crazy was good. Crazy got him back in the air, free and with his new family with him. Fighting each other was stupid, crazy was stopping the war. Trying to convince the Vikings just like that would've worked, hadn't it been for Stoick – everyone else looked too dumbfounded (or just plain dumb) to really do anything but listen to every word he said.

Still, Toothless liked crazy. Crazy could work.

**The view changes to the Viking fleet, about to enter Helheim's Gate's fog bank.**

"Wait, how much time does it take to reach Helheilm's Gate?" Snotlout spoke up, confused.

"A few hours… on boat," Astrid specified, glancing at Toothless. "On a dragon, half an hour if not less… likely less."

"Then Chief, why do you stay away for weeks during the Nest hunts?" the same boy continued, frowning.

"We usually stay nearby and try several times," Stoick replied tightly. The hunts were always a touchy subject, and for good reason – they lost each and every single one of them for the past three hundred years!

**The ships are turning around to enter the fog, all of them packed to the brim with Vikings.**

**"Signs your positions," Stoick orders, receiving several replies from the men on the other ships. "Stay within earshot."**

**As the boat advances, Gobber is shown to be standing behind the Chief. "Listen, Stoick. I was overhearing some of the men just now, and well, you know, some of them are wondering what is it we're up to here, n-not me of course, I know you're always the man with the plan, but some, not me, a-are wondering if there is in fact actually a plan at all, and what it may be?"**

Everyone burst out laughing while Gobber grumbled unhappily. "You try to tell Stoick off on something when he's not only furious, but certain he's about to find the Nest?"

"Well, at least Hiccup didn't learn _that_ from you!" laughed Snotlout, waving his mutton around. Yes, it was a very big piece of mutton.

"Hey!"

"I'm sorry Gobber, I'll try to be less terrifying next time you try to talk with me," Stoick promised teasingly.

"Yeah, sure, like that'll ever happen…"

**"Find the Nest and take it," Stoick replies without looking at him, still scowling at the fog ahead.**

"Uhh, I hate to be _that guy_, but Chief you do know that's never gonna work right?" Fishlegs spoke up hesitantly. "Even without the Queen, there must be thousands of dragons at the Nest. They'd outnumber you fifteen to one. You can't take them all on…"

Stoick massaged his forehead. "Yes, Fishlegs, I realize that. But hopefully we won't have to kill _every single one_ of them to scare them away. Not that we need to do that any more, anyway."

"They're gonna get roasted," Tuff snickered, elbowing his sister.

"Yeah, like yak mutton!" she sniggered as well.

Stoick shook his head. Poor Snotlout, who up until then had to deal with them at all times. Although, even if Snotlout had definitely been the leader of their little group before Hiccup joined, it wasn't like Snotlout actually had to contain the twins. No one really listened to him anyway.

**"Ah, of course, send them running," nodded Gobber, not sounding very convinced if his rambling was anything to go by. "The old Viking fallback. Nice and simple."**

**He's probably trying to get Stoick to elaborate on that.**

**The Chief silences him with a gesture, looking at Toothless. The dragon has his head down, but he seems to be listening to the low rumbling sound in the air. His ear frills move before he opens his eyes and starts to shift his head a little to hear better.**

**Stoick walks to the other side of the ship, shoving Vikings out of the way before reaching the rudder and pushing the helmsman to the side. "Step aside."**

"Please tell me you're not gonna try and bypass the fog bank by relying on how Toothless moves his head," Hiccup begged, eyes wide.

"Uhh…" Stoick looked away and scratched his beard. "Maybe?"

"That… that's beyond stupid!" The boy was very close to ripping his hair out. "We managed because we were _flying_. Flying _over_ the rock-infested foggy waters that led hundreds of Vikings to a watery death. You are trying to pass through even though for hundreds of years _no one_ managed. Oh, also, the dragons are still going to be there, it's not like having Toothless will magically make them disappear!"

Khor decided to go and help himself with some more orange juice. Yeah, that should've been the case, but all the dragons were at the Nest, so yeah, Stoick got lucky. The Queen was probably busy thinking about the intruders so she didn't send them out or something like that.

**Toothless raises his head, pupils narrowed, and looks to the right. Stoick, seeing it, steers the rudder to follow, and the other ships follow them, sailing around a large rock pillar.**

**The Night Fury then looks left, and the Chief steers the ship again. The men tell the other ships' to turn as well.**

**The leading ship avoids two more jagged islands on rocks and heads towards the screen.**

Despite knowing it wouldn't actually reach them a few, both Vikings and dragons, leaned back when the ship neared.

**The scene cuts to Hiccup standing in front of the Monstrous Nightmare's cage in the arena. The cage is recognizable thanks to its opening mechanism, a vertical trunk of wood in front of the door.**

"I wonder why every door has a different mechanism, wouldn't it be easier to just have one?" Fishlegs asked out loud.

"Who knows, it's been there for far longer than I have," Gobber shrugged. Sure he repaired them, but he never changed the mechanisms.

**"If you're planning on getting eaten-" Hiccup turns around at hearing Fishlegs's voice. Him, as well as the other teens, are standing in a line in the middle of the arena, having obviously just walked in. Ruff, Astrid and Snotlout are crossing their arms, Tuff is frowning but slacking down, and Fishlegs has his arms on his sides. "-I'd definitely go with the Gronckle."**

"Why the Gronckle?" asked Snotlout. "A Nightmare's bite is bigger."

"But a Gronckle's is much stronger, so it would kill him right away instead of needing several seconds of chewing," Fishlegs replied. "Also, the Gronckle's mouth is shape in-"

"Oh right, I just remembered that you're boring and I don't care," scoffed Snotlout, leaving the nerdy giant to sulk.

**Hiccup looks at them, confused by their presence.**

**Tuffnut shoves Ruff aside and walks up to him. Behind him, Astrid and Snotlout are seen smirking in amusement. "You were right to seek help from the world's most deadly weapon," he claims dramatically, waving his fingers in front of his face. Then, seeing little change in Hiccup's expression (he just got more confused and 'uhh'ed in confusion), he clarifies, "It's me."**

"Then that would be Toothless, not you," Stormfly replied with a snort.

"Me? Not the Queen?" the Night Fury spoke up, slightly surprised but definitely flattered.

"The Queen is not on the list."

**Snotlout then pushes Tuffnut aside and stands right in front of him, pumping his fists. "I ****_love_**** this plan!"**

**"I didn't-"**

"Wait, you just up and came to help me, without even knowing what I was doing?" Hiccup exclaimed, shocked. Sure, there in the hall they were kind-of-friends now, but in the future? To them, he'd just committed treason!

"We probably listened to you more than those muttonheads did and that was it," Snotlout commented, pointing at the entirety of Berk, who glared at him.

"Yeah, plus riding a dragon sounds too cool to pass up," Ruffnut grinned excitedly.

"Yeah, as long as I'm not stuck with you!" Tuffnut added.

"Well, you got your answer, they're all on your side now," Astrid shrugged with a smile, nudging him lightly.

**Hiccup is progressively backing away from the crazy teens.**

**Ruffnut punches Snotlout away and gets waaaay too close for comfort. "You're crazy…" She leans in. "I like that."**

Hiccup tried his best not to react negatively. He didn't want to offend Ruffnut, she really wasn't all that bad, but… Astrid. Astrid's simple existence made every other girl have no chance at all.

Stoick, guessing what was going on in his head, chuckled a bit. True indeed. It had been the same for him and Valka… he'd only taken a bit longer to fall in love with her. But since then, Valka had been the only woman in his heart.

**Astrid pulls Ruff away by one of her helmet's horns. Hiccup lets out a relieved sigh.**

**"So," she asks as soon as the crazy female twin is out of the way. "What is the plan?"**

**Hiccup smiles at them all.**

"Well, it's probably gonna be riding the arena's dragons into battle against the Queen," Hiccup replied nonchalantly.

"WHAT?!" everyone shouted. Well, not everyone. The twins, Astrid, Toothless and Stormfly didn't, because they weren't that shocked, as well as Stoick and Gobber, who had been expecting it.

"Are you insane?! It's gonna kill us all!" cried Snotlout.

"What could you possibly do against her?!" Meatlug exclaimed, scared as well.

"Oh, you'll just have to wait and see…" replied Hiccup, smiling slightly as he waited for the rest of the future to be shown.


	14. Dragon Riders

"Hiccup, you can't be serious," Stoick exclaimed, looking at him, scandalized. "That monster eats dragons for breakfast!"

"Literally," Gobber added, shrugging when Stoick glared at him. "And for lunch and dinner!"

"Going after us would be suicide, Hiccup," the Chief continued, choosing to ignore the blacksmith for the time being. "If we're lucky, that thing won't even exit the mountain and might remain stuck to starve."

"He's not wrong, I've lived at the Nest for over a hundred years and she's never moved from her spot, unless it was for punishing us," an old, green Gronckle spoke up. Beside him his son, who would later be called Shattermaster by Dagur, nodded in agreement. "She could be stuck for all we know."

"I doubt a simple mountain will be enough to stop the Blood Tyrant," Toothless retorted gloomily.

"I doubt anything would be enough to stop the Blood Tyrant," grumbled Hookfang.

"Stop being so pessimistic, guys!" Hiccup exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air and sick of the constant stream of complaints. "If you don't want me to be reckless, well maybe you shouldn't have caused this mess in the first place!"

"Well, if you hadn't chosen the worst time to tell me you were friends with a dragon, this mess wouldn't be happening right now!" Stoick retorted, doing the same hand gesture as his son.

"When was I supposed to tell you? You wouldn't believe me unless I proved it, and even then you'd just go ballistics anyway!"

"He's not wrong," Fishlegs murmured, unheard by everyone but Snotlout, who found himself nodding reluctantly. Stoick reacting positively or at least calmly to the news that his son befriended a dragon was unimaginable.

"Well, you could've told me when I gave you that helmet!" Stoick countered, smiling triumphantly when Hiccup frowned, not having an answer to that. "Why didn't you tell me then? It was the perfect moment – you were even about to tell me!"

"I…"

Stoick raised an eyebrow inquisitively, trying to coax an answer -preferably an acceptance of defeat- out of the boy.

"I…" Hiccup's frown hardened into a glare and he straightened up with an aura of authority. "Well, maybe I didn't want to ruin the _first_ conversation with my father in _years_ where you weren't disappointed or angry at me!" he burst out, basically stomping his foot to emphasize the point. "Because had I told you, it would've been a disaster! You would've locked me in the house, then you would've gone to the Cove to kill Toothless, possibly dying in the process! Then you, Toothless and who knows how many would be dead, and the village would've been left without its Chief!"

"Hiccup-" Gobber tried to call out to him to get him to calm down, but he wasn't having any of that.

"I chose to do it in front of everyone because I had chosen to _leave_, but I couldn't leave Astrid here with the knowledge she'd have to kill creatures she found out weren't as evil as we painted them as. And I couldn't leave the village and the dragons all suffering at the hands of the Queen!" Hiccup continued his rant. For a second, everyone could clearly see that despite taking after his mother in looks, the boy's personality was a kinder, sweeter, calmer version of his father's – wise perhaps, but still capable of fiery outbursts. "And it's not like I had the _time_ to do much else! It's easy to criticize _after_ everything is over and when you have lots of time to think!"

"And let's not forget that hadn't the Chief pissed off the dragon, everything would've gone well," Tuffnut chimed in with a knowing look.

"Yeah, no one was doing anything," Ruffnut nodded, agreeing with Detective Nut. "Then he scared the Nightmare and everything went to Helheim."

"Not. Helping," Snotlout ground out, elbowing them both and keeping a wary eye on Stoick, who understandably wasn't looking very pleased at the reminder.

"I can't believe I'm say this, but they're right," Gobber piped up, gesturing to the twins. The Chief turned his glare to him but the blacksmith, far too used to it to be affected, continued as if nothing happened. "It's not like the lad had a choice. Besides, we all know Hiccup, he'd never do something like this if it wasn't literally the only thing he could do."

"Thank you!" the boy exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air again.

"I guess it's just easier to call something stupid when you're looking at it from an outside view," Fishlegs nodded shyly, cowering slightly when Stoick glared at him. "But if you think about it, taking in consideration how much Hiccup cares for the Chief and his dragon, this is really the only option he could've taken."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever," Snotlout cut in, slapping Fishlegs away. "Can't we just watch how it goes? Beats arguing about it at least."

Stoick, Hiccup, Toothless and Astrid all glared at him, but Fishlegs and Gobber just shrugged. "The lad ain't wrong," the two-limbed blonde agreed. "We won't solve anything anyway."

"Plus if it does end well, it'd be a weight off your shoulders," Meatlug added cheerfully, lurching over to sit close by. "And if it doesn't, Hiccup will know not to do that in our world."

"He's got a point," Fishlegs pointed out, shrugging.

"She's a girl," Stormfly snapped, rolling her eyes. He immediately blurted out an embarrassed apology. "What's with you and mistaking genders?"

"Yeah, he does that from time to time," Ruffnut nodded nonchalantly.

"Snotlout does it too whenever he wants to beat me up but he can't tell me from Ruffnut," Tuffnut added as well, scowling in irritation and feign offence. "As if I'd ever look as stupid as she does!"

"Eh, I can see why he'd confuse you for me, you've always been the girly one," the female twin huffed with a shrug.

"Can we please get on with it?!" Stoick roared, silencing any further twin conversation.

**The Vikings' ships are shown sailing through two giant columns of rock jutting out of the water.**

**On the first ship, the Vikings watch in apprehension as what appears to be a dragon's head peeks out of the fog, only to realize that it's just the front of another Viking ship, hung by its mast on the rocky pillars that hide within the fog of Helheim's Gate.**

**"Oh," Gobber chuckled nervously when he sees it. The ship's skeletal figure is shown again, standing out against the pale gloom of the fog. "I was wondering where that went."**

"Didn't you already know, since it never came back?" Spitelout asked, staring at the corpse of the _Gutted Nightmare_. That ship had been one of his favourites before it… well… was lost.

"Who cares?" Snotlout unconsciously cut off his dad, grinning mockingly at Gobber. "More importantly, is wittle Gobbew scawed?"

"Who are you calling scared, you little troublemaker!" the smith exclaimed, waving his hook menacingly and almost hitting Hiccup and Astrid, who were sitting nearby, instead hitting Stoick in the face, who did not look amused. "Do I have to remind everyone of how 'brave' _you_ were in the ring, against only _one_ dragon?"

"Yes! …No! …Uh-" Snotlout looked confused for a moment before scowling and crossing his arms. "Shut up, Gobber!"

**The wooden dragon head bumps into their ship's mast.**

**Toothless raises his head and opens his eyes wide, his pupils narrowed, before his right ears flicks and he turns to the right. Behind him, Stoick pulls the rudder and the ship steers to the right, narrowly avoiding a batch of rocks they still bump into. The Vikings onboard look at the rocks with worry.**

**Toothless suddenly starts to squirm a lot more as the fog starts to thin. A rocky wall is shown in front of the boat, still semi-hidden by the mist.**

**Stoick and Gobber take notice, their eyes widening. "Stay low, and ready your weapons," Stoick commands quietly (for him, at least). Gobber nods in agreement, seemingly focused now.**

Hiccup sighed. "Great. You've already arrived, and I'm nowhere to be seen. That's just perfect."

"And now we're gonna have to save all your sorry butts, hah!" Snotlout boasted, going for another bite of his mutton, only to find he'd finished it already. Then he remembered he could _always_ have more and just mouthed at Khor to give him another one, which appeared in his hand. _'And for once Dad will be the useless one watching helplessly while the Snotman rules!'_

"I highly doubt you're gonna be saving any butts today," Hookfang snorted, accidentally setting fire to Snotlout's behind. "Huh?" the dragon said as the boy ran around, trying to put out the flames with his hands (which didn't work) before Khor threw a bucket of water at him, drenching him but also putting out the flames. _'Huh,'_ the Nightmare repeated in his head. _'That was really funny. If this whole thing ends well and I see that guy again without being killed, I might just turn this into a habit.'_

Hiccup and Astrid sighed in unison before exchanging slightly surprised looks, and smiling slightly at each other for the coincidence.

**The ships thuds against the shore, startling them both a little bit. The boat is shown having reached a beach made up entirely by dark, almost black sand. Very ominous. A strong, buzz-like sound fills the air, growing stronger by the second.**

"I wholeheartedly agree," Fishlegs nodded furiously. "That's really really ominous!"

**Stoicks rushes to the front of the ship, ignoring the still struggling dragon, with Gobber right behind him.**

**They admire the massive wall of rock in front of them. The view sweeps up the rocks until it stops when the red tail of a Monstrous Nightmare comes in sight. The tail swishes once and then quickly disappears back in the shadows.**

**"We're here," whispers Stoick, a hint of a smile on his face. He jumps off and lands on the sand as behind him, the mist-hidden ships approach the shore. The buzzing sound quickly drops to silence.**

**He looks around, confused by the sudden quiet, and takes a few steps forward.**

"Ta-da-da, you're dead," Toothless snorted, trying to emulate Hiccup's nasal voice and failing, but still managing a good deadpan.

"I mean, he's not wrong," Belch shrugged, to which Barf nodded in agreement before the first head continued, "You are more or less in the most dangerous place we know of. For humans at least."

"What's the most dangerous for dragons?" Astrid asked, interested.

"Well, there is an island quite a long trip away from here that is full of these blue flowers that are like, super poisonous for dragons, not sure about humans," Barf explained. "Just a few sniffs and boom! You're deadly sick. And the cure requires Scauldron poison, so it's impossible for us to get it."

"I concur with my other head's statement," Belch claimed formally, nodding in acknowledgement to Barf. "That island spells certain death for all and any dragon unlucky enough to reside there for any extended period of time."

"They're like, a draconic version of the twins," Snotlout said, horrified.

"Well, I guess I know who they're gonna get, then," Hiccup commented with a shrug.

**The scene changes to the snout of the Nightmare, slowly coming into view. Then Hiccup is shown leading the dragon out of his open cage by keeping a calm hand in front of his snout.**

A few Vikings had the misfortune of having been drinking, and promptly spat it out when they saw the calm Nightmare docilely following the boy's wishes.

"Hiccup, how are you doing that?" Astrid exclaimed, shocked and in awe. "It took you hours to train Toothless, yet you calmed a dragon that tried to kill you earlier that very day, and you do it so effortlessly?"

Hiccup shrugged shyly, not really sure of the answer himself. "Well, he did seem to be responding well before, you know, he got scared."

Stoick couldn't help but feel a stab of guilt.

"How aren't you afraid of him?!" Fishlegs exclaimed, freaked out by how calm the boy was.

The boy rolled his eyes. "Calm down, Fishlegs, I already knew he wouldn't attack me right away since I was nice to him earlier. Besides, I have bigger problems at the moment, than being afraid."

"Whoa, he just admitted he was too busy to be afraid," Tuffnut awed before frowning. "But wouldn't that be a bit… counterproductive? Like, if you're so busy you can't be afraid and you get killed, then you won't be able to do the things you were busy for!"

"Count- how do you know what that means?" Snotlout questioned, shocked by the male twin's vocabulary.

"What?" Tuff looked around at the stares everyone was giving him. "I listen and learn, people!"

**The teens are shown watching in awe. Ruffnut is leaning forward, wonder in her eyes, while beside her Tuffnut looks touched by the awesomeness of it all. Astrid is smiling proudly at Hiccup, as if she had already known he'd be able to do that (which she kinda did), but Snotlout doesn't seem to be sharing their enthusiasm.**

**He fidgets nervously, growing more and more scared the closer Hiccup -and thus the dragon- gets. He glances down and then kneels. At his feet there is the broken tip of a spear, and he scoops it up as if that little thing could help him against a Nightmare.**

"How did I not see that thing?" Hiccup asked himself, scratching his head as he stared at the weapon. "I must be really distracted if I didn't even remove all the weapons."

"It doesn't really matter," shrugged Hookfang. "Besides, either the spear goes, or the kid does."

"Hey!"

The dragon turned to him, and Snotlout hid back down behind Hiccup again.

**Astrid, seeing him kneeling with the spearhead, lightly slaps his shoulder and shakes her head before returning to stare at Hiccup and the Nightmare. "Uh-uh."**

**Snotlout doesn't look happy at all, but dutifully puts down the broken weapon.**

"I suppose this will suffice," Hookfang snorted imperiously, earning eye rolls from Toothless, Stormfly, Meatlug, Hiccup, Astrid and Stoick.

"Shut up, err… whatever your name is!" Snotlout smartly replied, sulking with his arms crossed.

**The calm Nightmare is following Hiccup, who is walking backwards to keep his eyes fixed on the dragon's.**

**Snotlout lets the spearhead fall and leans back with a scared noise. Astrid, Ruff and Tuff seem unaffected, but on the other end of the line Fishlegs was leaning back too.**

**Hiccup steps back beside Snotlout and reaches out his free hand to grab Snotlout's arm, bringing it closer to the dragon's snout while ignoring its owner's fear.**

**"Wait, what are you-" Snotlout starts, resisting slightly before yanking his hand away when it was about to touch the dragon.**

**"Shh," Hiccup reassures him, dragging his arm closer again. "It's okay. It's okay."**

"So I'm giving you the Nightmare?" Hiccup wondered out loud, rubbing his chin. "I'm not sure who should I pity, you or him."

"I don't need your pity! I can handle that dragon!" Snotlout protested, glowering at him. "In fact, I'm sure I'll become even better than you are with Toothless!"

"That's setting the bar a bit high, don't you think, Snotlout?" Astrid mocked him with a smirk.

"Shut up, Astrid!"

**The view shows Snotlout's hand replacing Hiccup's on the Nightmare's snout as Hiccup removes his hand. The Nightmare remains calm and begins to make a low growling sound that is very similar to purring.**

"Are all dragons similar to cats?" Hiccup laughed, causing the Nightmare to pout and look away.

"Perhaps he just noticed the boy's discomfort and was trying to reassure him," Toothless hypothesised.

**Snotlout lets out a shocked and relieved gasp, as if he can't believe he's still alive. He and Hiccup exchange glances before he lets out a slightly nervous laugh, staring in disbelief at the Nightmare.**

**Seeing he's fine, Hiccup walks away, passing behind Snotlout, who turns to look at him with sudden worry. "Where are you going?"**

**Hiccup walks up to a box with several weapons sticking out of and leans in to fetch something out of it. "You're gonna need something to help you hold on," he explains as he takes out a rope and smiles at the other teens.**

**The Viking teenagers turn around, slightly confused, to see that all the dragons are out of their cages, staring at them intently. The Gronckle is staring straight ahead, the Nadder shakes her head and ruffles her wings before tilting her head to the side to see them, while the Zippleback intertwines their heads to let each have a look.**

"Cool, we get our own dragons!" Ruffnut cheered, pumping a fist in the air and accidentally hitting Tuffnut in the face, knocking him down.

"Can we name them?" Fishlegs asked with a mix of anticipation and uncertainty.

"If they let you," Hiccup shrugged, gesturing to the dragons. "I'm not the boss of them."

_'Not yet anyway,'_ Khor added in his mind.

"Can we?" Astrid turned to look at the Nadder. She was really sure she'd be taking the Nadder. Fishlegs and the Gronckle were perfect, and the twins could ride a head of the Zippleback each, so she would have to pick the Nadder, if only because it was the only one left.

"Why not?" Stormfly replied, glancing at the others to check with them. They all nodded, with Hookfang being the most reluctant. "Sure, go ahead."

"Barf!" Ruffnut shouted, grabbing the right head of the Zippleback, at the same time Tuffnut shouted "Belch!" while grabbing the other.

"Hey! It's _my_ dragon!" she exclaimed, glaring at him.

"Since when? Hiccup was obviously going to give it to me!" Tuffnut replied, knocking their helmets together as they leaned closer to glare at each other.

"Guys, it's a two-headed dragon," Hiccup pointed out. "You can name one head Barf, and the other Belch."

"I think I'm going to call you… Meatlug!" Fishlegs rubbed the Gronckle's head, which she was really enjoying. "Is it okay, girl?"

"Sure it is!"

"And I think I'm going to call you Stormfly," Astrid stated, caressing the Nadder. "A fierce dragon like you can't have a name like-"

"Astrid, I'm warning you, even if you are Hiccup's mate I _will_ hurt you," Toothless growled at her, not at all happy with all the critique his name received. He liked it, for gods' sake!

The girl rolled her eyes, but changed her words nonetheless. "-like Barf and Belch. Do you like Stormfly?"

The Nadder thought about it for a second before nodding. She liked the name. Better than Toothless at least, she thought as she smirked at the Night Fury, who gave her an annoyed glare.

"And I'm gonna call you The Great Mount of the Snotman!" No prize for who guessed that one. The Nightmare shook his head. "Snotmare? Snotty? Snotdragon?"

"If it has 'snot' or 'lout' in it, I don't want it," he grumbled, still shaking his head.

"Okay, fine, don't get your tunic in a bunch." Snotlout rolled his eyes and glanced at the long, curvy teeth in the Nightmare's jaws. "What about Hookfang?"

The dragon was about to shake his head, but then stopped and nodded. "I like it. You can call me Hookfang."

"What about you, Dad, feel like getting a dragon?" Hiccup asked, looking up at his father.

"Don't be ridiculous, Hiccup, me with a dragon?" Stoick scoffed. "Just because we made peace with them doesn't mean everyone should have one."

**The scene changes the Dragon Island, where a man is seen stabbing sharpened wooden sticks into the ground. In the background, the Vikings, armed and ready, walk toward the mountain while giant catapults are set up in the fog.**

**A crude drawing of the attack plan is shown, with Stoick drawing with his sword. There are three circles, the Vikings, with arrows pointing at the X on a flat line that marked the side of the mountain, and two longer arrows going around it, possibly to indicate the catapult fire required to break the rocks.**

**"When we crack this mountain open, all hell is gonna break loose," Stoick claims, finishing the plan. Gobber and Spitelout are on his left, while a blonde woman stands on his right. They all look up at the mountain.**

"Mom!?" Fishlegs squeaked, staring at the woman on the right of the Chief.

"Don't look so surprised, Fishlegs, of course I would go," his mother replied, smiling gently at her son.

"Do you think _my_ mom is there too?" Tuffnut asked, elbowing his twin.

"It's _our_ mom, moron!" she snapped, punching him in the side.

"Yes, I was there too," their mother sighed, shaking her head alongside her husband. "Almost all the adults went. Only those unable to fight stayed on Berk."

"Wow… that means it's gonna be an even bigger massacre than we thought!" Tuffnut cheered.

Ruff secretly elbowed Hiccup. "Hey, I'm not sure if he's gonna be there, but if there is a guy called Gruffnut when you arrive, can you let the Queen eat him before you save everyone?"

"W-What?" Hiccup turned around, but the female twin was already back to celebrating the possible slaughter with her twin. "Why would I-"

Astrid slapped a hand on his mouth. "Don't bother, it's the twins."

Hiccup glanced at her. She had more experience than he did with the twins, so if she said it was better to ignore them, it probably was. Except that she would probably opt for ignoring them (and Snotlout) all the time, so…

Eventually he just shrugged. If it was important, Ruffnut would remind him again.

**"In my undies," Gobber comments, earning himself a disbelieving look and a head shake from Spitelout. "Good thing I brought extras!"**

**"No matter how this ends," Stoick states as he steps forward, the view circling around him until it shows the mountain's wall, "it ends today."**

"Well, it's gonna end badly," Skyblaze muttered, turning around to avoid looking.

"Coward," Grass and Wood muttered. They had seen their own future death and they were still watching.

**Stoick raises an open hand, and then clenches it into a fist, signalling for the catapults to start firing.**

**The Vikings cut the ropes and the trebuchets fire their boulders, which fly and smash into the wall, breaking away the rocks. More and more hit the wall, cracking it and making it collapse, revealing a hidden passage underneath.**

"How did you know there was a hole in there?" Tuffnut asked, scratching his head.

"We didn't, we would just keep hitting the mountain until it either revealed their nest or the dragons were lured out," Stoick replied. That plan was hardly new, after all he'd spent years trying to perfect it.

"Wait, why do you want to kill them again?"

Stoick rolled his eyes and ignored the male twin.

**Stoick is shown climbing up to the entrance, with the army closing in behind him, hammer and shield in hand. He waves his giant hammer, and a catapult fires a flaming heap of hay into the hole for more light.**

**The sphere of fires flies over Stoick's head, illuminating the tunnel and the hundreds upon hundreds of dragons of all kinds, but mainly Nadders and Nightmares.**

"They are the two most common species," Toothless nodded in agreement, seeing just how many more of those two breeds there were, compared to all the others.

"Are you sure your father is going to be okay?" Fishlegs asked Hiccup, trembling. "Because that's a _lot_ of dragons, and it's their nest."

"I'm not worried about those dragons. Well, I'm not worried those dragons will hurt Dad, they could still hurt the others," he shook his head, staring attentively at the screen-wall. "I'm more worried about the Queen. I hope something as small as this won't make it come out, but I cannot be sure. If it does exit the volcano, then they're all doomed."

"Not if we get there," Snotlout boasted.

"We wouldn't have enough firepower to kill it anyway, Snotlout," the heir sighed, shaking his head. "We'd need a lot more than even what Toothless can do. Even all together, the most we could do is distract it." He returned to his thoughts, frowning. There had to be something he could do to stop the Queen, possibly kill it, but what?

**Stoick takes a deep breath and then, with a bellow, he throws himself at the dragons. The latters screech and shriek as they begin to fly out of the tunnel. Stoick tries to hit them with his hammer, but they seem to be completely ignoring him.**

**Outside, Gobber tries to fight them with his axe prosthetic, but they just take flight and move away from the battlefield. Spitelout is shown with the same problem.**

**Stoick is shown again, still trying to hit them without any success. Outside, the same blonde woman from earlier tries to fight some alongside the other Vikings, but they escape without even stopping to fight the invaders.**

**View from the ships, the dragons fly out of the tunnel and away from the army as Toothless watches them, still bound. He whimpers, frills lowering in fright, obviously scared.**

Hiccup's grip on his dragon tightened. He knew it was logic to be scared of the Queen but the simple fact Toothless was scared unnerved and unsettled him. It wasn't just that he was a Night Fury, the strongest dragons known to Vikings, but that he was Toothless. Though he _had_ been scared of Hiccup himself during their first meeting, so it was to be expected he'd be scared of the Queen. "Don't worry, bud, I'm coming."

_'That's what I'm afraid of,'_ Toothless groaned, but didn't say out loud. He didn't want Hiccup to misunderstand him and think he didn't believe in him like the rest of the Vikings. He did think Hiccup would be able to save him, he just didn't want him to get killed to do that.

"Ahem."

"_We_ are _all_ coming," Hiccup corrected himself with an eye roll, glancing at Astrid, who was wearing a smug smile. "Seriously? Not even on a dragon and already demanding credit?"

"Of course, I can't have you take all the credit and get an ego like Snotlout's," she grinned cheekily at him, causing him to roll his eyes again.

**The view from above the fog back, with the mountain on the background, shows the dragons all leaving.**

"I think we understood that, the dragons are all running away!" Snotlout exclaimed, tired of the long-winded scene. "Can we get on with it?"

**Gobber is shown looking at the retreating creatures in disbelief. "Is that it?" he asks to no one in particular before shrugging. Spitelout is seen behind him, axe in hand.**

**Stoick walks out of the tunnel, looking at the fleeing dragons, while Spitelout shouts "We've done it!"**

"No you haven't," Barf replied, shaking his head. "Not by a long shot."

"Not by a shot longer than a Nadder's," added Belch, shaking his head as well.

"We know that now, at least," Gobber shrugged clueless, while Spitelout fumed.

**The army of Vikings all cheer, raising their weapons victoriously.**

**As Stoick stares at the dragons, a rumbling sound reaches his ears, making him turn toward the ships, where Toothless is whimpering and trying to back away despite the restraints that keep him trapped.**

Hiccup gritted his teeth. He hated seeing his brother of another mother (and father) like that. With that muzzle on, he couldn't even breath properly, much less spit fire.

An idea crossed his mind and his eyes widened. It wasn't perfect by a long shot but hey, drastic times called for drastic measures, and it wasn't like anyone else was stepping up with a plan. He just hoped his future self had already thought of it… either that or an even better one he hadn't thought of yet.

**Eyes widening, Stoick calls to his people "This isn't over! Form your ranks! Hold together!" He turns around, ready to fight, as the sound of cracking rock is heard from the tunnel, the ground cracking as a gigantic roar/screech comes from deep within the mountain, so strong it generates a wind that forces Stoick to flinch and that even rattles the ships slightly.**

Stoick knew he had screwed up. He'd seen the size of that monster and he knew they couldn't kill it. But he didn't expect to have screwed up _that_ much! If that roar was any indication, not even the mightiest catapult would be able to hurt that thing.

_'Is this how Hiccup feels like time he accidentally causes a mess?'_ he asked himself, holding his head in his hands.

Hiccup was watching attentively, desperately hoping to get there on time. Beside him, Astrid was just as nervous, slightly biting her lip as she murmured "Come on…" to her future self and future Hiccup.

Even the twins weren't saying anything, and that was a first since they had a knack for being oblivious to tense situations. Poor Fishlegs looked like he was about to pass out, and Snotlout was fidgeting madly, because as much as he didn't like his father he was terrified by the thought of losing him.

"Do you think we can kill it?"

"Have you seen that thing? It's impossible!"

"Maybe we should run…"

"Vikings never run!"

"I would, but I don't think it's going to make a difference."

"That thing is massive!"

Stoick progressively frowned more and more as the discouraged murmurs filled the Viking side of the hall. While he too had to admit they had no chance against it, perhaps it had some weak spot they hadn't been able to see yet, and they would be able to exploit it. Perhaps it couldn't breath fire and was too slow to catch up with them. Perhaps…

Oh, who was he kidding, they were all going to die.

**Gobber looks around, confused by the roar.**

"You didn't even tell them what I told you?!" Hiccup exclaimed, shocked and angry. "I thought you'd at least tell them there was a Queen!"

Stoick blushed in embarrassment. "I- Uh… Well, y-you see… I may not have, uh, taken your words very, uhh… seriously." He glanced at Gobber for help, but the blacksmith gave him the 'you're on your own' look. Traitor. "You're very… well, from your p-perspective any dragon bigger than, uh, normal, uh, would look, you know… really big?"

The teens and a few dragons had to stifle chuckles at how Hiccup-y the Chief himself was acting, though they supposed it had gotten it from Stoick – the stammer, just not the usual confidence.

Hiccup, however, was both unimpressed and unamused, a dangerous combination indeed. He just couldn't believe his father would bring the entire village to the Nest, without even telling them there was a huge dragon living inside it. And he'd told _him_ very clearly! He'd shouted at him that it was a dragon like he'd never seen before! But nooo, of course he had to go and attack. He hated it when he just up and attacked. "So you just didn't even mention it at all?" he questioned with a rare scowl, something he got from both his parents.

Stoick would never admit it, but he was a little cowed by his son's current expression. It reminded him way too much of Valka's when she was disappointed and pissed at him, and it had _never_ ended well for him. _Never_. And now he was seeing the same expression on his son's face. He must've been cursed by the Gods to have someone to scare him into submission from time to time, when he screwed up.

So he just chose not to dig himself a deeper hole and very obviously turned away to look at the movie.

**Stoick glares at the dark tunnel before a monstrous, growling roar tears through the air and his eyes widen, probably catching sight of the monster's size. He steps away and jumps down the tunnel's collapsed entrance, waving his shield at his men. "Get clear!" he orders as, behind him, the green horn of the Queen is glimpsed in the tunnel, barrelling through the rock like nothing.**

"Oh boy…" commented Gobber, rubbing his temples. "This is gonna be a tough day."

"You don't think?" Snotlout snarked, rolling his eyes at the blacksmith, who in his (and everybody else's) opinion had a few too many loose screws.

**The big, strong, proud Vikings all take one look at the monstrosity that's coming out of the mountain before screaming and running away. Smart move.**

**Stoick is seen running alongside the others before he stops and turns around to look at their opponent.**

**The head of the Queen smashes through the rock, revealing itself in all its big, bumpy ugliness. The head alone is bigger than the tunnel holding hundreds of dragons.**

"That thing is huge!" Fishlegs shivered, trying to recover before he fainted. Especially since he still hadn't seen the rest of the body yet! To distract himself, he focused on what he did best – rattle off dragon facts. "It looks like a Boulder Class to me, that would explain the high resistance to the volcano's magma and its extreme durability, which allows it to smash its way out of the mountain with ease. Its mouth is oddly shaped, perhaps to increase its grip on its-"

"Fishface, seriously?" The stocky boy groaned in disgust. "You're geeking out now?"

"You know what?" The husky nerd completely ignored the half-as-tall boy and turned to Hiccup. "This thing needs a name. It doesn't feel right to steal the dragons' name and it doesn't deserve to be called a 'queen'."

"I think you're right," the dragon rider replied, nodding in agreement. "Well, from what we've seen its blue or greenish-blue…"

"And it's gotta have 'death' in its name because it's way too awesome not to," the female twin interjected with a giant grin.

"So… the Blue Death? The Green Death?" Hiccup offered, earning himself doubtful frowns and head shakes.

"You know, I think Red Death would be more appropriate, considering how many people and dragons it's killed," the male twin offered up. "You know, 'cause blood is red, plus the dragons call it Blood Tyrant…"

"Tell you what, he makes a pretty good point," Hiccup admitted, glancing at the twins, who were now cheering because their proposition had been accepted. "Who votes for Red Death?" All the teens raised their hands. Toothless and Stormfly did the same with a paw and a wing, respectively. "Red Death it is."

"Ah, I see the Chief's opinion doesn't matter any longer when it comes to dragons," Stoick commented, amused, making Hiccup jump slightly.

"Well, uh, it's just that we were the ones to trust dragons first, so I just guessed we could give names to dragons now that we don't have to call them 'monstrous' or 'hideous' any longer." Hiccup dared a glance at his father, who burst out laughing.

"Don't worry, son, Red Death it is. You found it, you decide who can name it." His eyes hardened. "Now, all that's left is to get rid of it."

"That's the hard part," Stormfly snorted, shaking her head. "But I'm sure you'll manage."

Toothless grumbled something very similar to 'yeah, that's what I'm afraid of'.

**Stoick stops again a little further, beside Gobber, who is looking at the Red Death with wide eyes. "Beard of Thor," he exclaims in shock. "What is that?"**

Hiccup gave his father another glare for not telling even Gobber about it. Stoick pretended not to have seen it.

**With another roar, the monstrous queen frees itself a little more, showing its neck as the rocks thrown in the air by its exit fall down on the Viking army.**

Stoick clenched his fists. He just hoped no one was killed.

**The view switches to Stoick's wide, horrified eyes. "Odin help us."**

Silence fell on the hall, or at least the Viking side of it. They'd never thought they'd hear their Chief say that. He didn't even sound scared, which made the prayer for a divine intervention all the worse. True, looking at it from a screen could never compare to seeing that monster in person, but Stoick the Vast was something no one could scare. To hear him say that shook them all to the core.

Stoick passed a hand over his face. That was really, really bad.

**The Red Death roars, pulling itself out of the tunnel. Its giant paws smash onto the ground as the Vikings run in fear.**

**Stoick's horror and shock shifts to determination. "Catapults!" he calls, barely glancing behind him to check if his order was being followed.**

The Vikings breathed a little easier. Their Chief was back. Stoick the Vast would have a plan.

**A salvo is launched at the monster, the boulders merely bouncing off its tough skin as it roars at the catapults.**

The Vikings paled.

**With an angry roar, it bites down on a trebuchet, destroying it entirely before stomping down on it.**

**Stoick is seen running alongside a blonde Viking with a sword and a shield, who shouts to the others, "Get to the ships!"**

"No!" Stoick, Hiccup and Astrid all shouted at the same time before exchanging surprised glances.

"The ships are a terrible choice," Hookfang commented, shaking his head in disappointment.

"He's right," Meatlug agreed, "you'd all be easy pickings. The ships are larger and slower than you, which means the Blood Tyrant will have no problem destroying them."

**"No, NOO!" Stoick shouts, immediately countering the Viking's order.**

**The Red Death takes a deep breath and torches the ships with a gigantic stream of fire. The music increases dramatically as the Vikings onboard throw themselves in the water to avoid being burned alive. The monster's blast engulfs all the ships, setting them aflame.**

**Left alone and still chained and restrained, Toothless looks around, terrified.**

Hiccups felt his heart constrict at the sight of his best friend in such a state. He just hoped he'd get there in time and got him out of those chains. Together they had a chance, but separate they would surely fail.

"And now we have no way home," a black-haired Viking exclaimed. "Even if we survive, how are we going to return to Berk?"

"Will we be stuck there forever?"

"We will find a way," Stoick spoke up, reassuring them. "But first we need to find a way to get rid of the Red Death."

**"Smart, that one," notes Gobber, pointing out how the Red Death has just destroyed their only way out of the island – and thus out of its jaws.**

**"I was a fool," Stoick grouches bitterly, in remorse and regret. He turns to Spitelout, whom they just caught up with. "Lead the men to the far side of the island.**

**"Right!" the Jorgenson nods in acknowledgement before turning to the other Vikings. "Everyone, to the far side of the island!"**

**"Gobber, go with the men," Stoick orders without even looking back.**

**"I think I'll stay," says Gobber, hobbling after him. "Just in case you're thinking of doing something crazy."**

"You know, now that I think of it, this kind of reminds me of Hiccup and Astrid's scene at the docks," Ruffnut noted, rubbing her chin pensively.

"Yeah, you're right, sis," her twin agreed, also rubbing his chin, although he wasn't deep in thought because his only two neurons were playing hide-and-seek, leaving little room for thoughts. "One stubborn, redheaded Haddock with a plan and one blue-eyed blonde there to remind them they're not alone… And to always do something crazy, of course."

Stoick and Gobber exchanged a horrified look. Hadn't they already been sitting a few yards apart, they would've scooted away. They could both see something between the two young teens basically cuddling beside the Night Fury, and being compared to them was _really_ awkward.

Meanwhile, Hiccup had both his arms around Astrid to try and stop her from beating up the twins… mostly Tuffnut.

**"I can buy them a few minutes by giving that thing someone to hunt!" Stoick turns around, grabs his shirt and explains his plan, trying to convince him to go since he's not there to win, but to sacrifice himself for the others.**

"Dad, no!" Hiccup shouted, not bothering to hold Astrid back any longer – not that she was in the mood for beating the twins any more.

Feeling really uncomfortable, Astrid placed a hand on Hiccup's shoulder as a sign of support. He was tense under her hand, which was understandable, as if he was ready to bolt.

**As Stoick releases his grip to go, Gobber grabs his forearm, stopping him, before grabbing his hand. "Then I can double that time," he states with a small smile.**

**Stoick sags slightly in both fond relief and acceptance, and smiles slightly.**

"No!" This time, Astrid was the one holding Hiccup back, not unlike her future self had done in the Arena, when Toothless had been captured. She forced him to sit down, but didn't release her hold on him, both in case she needed to keep him still again, and because _he_ needed it.

**The view circles around them before Stoick turns to the Red Death, trying to get its attention. "Here!" he shouts, brandishing hammer and shield high – in the same hand.**

**"Oh no, here!" Gobber counters, waving his axe prosthetic above his head and jumping to distract the Queen.**

Astrid tightened her hold on Hiccup when she felt him about to get up again. There was nothing they could do, nothing they could change. She could only hope the boy's fears turned out to be false. And she really hoped her parents had gotten out of there safe as well.

Khor made a mental note of telling them they all survived, though they did return bruised and battered.

**The Red Death is shown again, lifting a Viking with its teeth before trying to bite down on him and missing. The miraculously still-alive Viking falls on the ground and gets back up, running away while the Chief and the blacksmith approach the beast with battle cries.**

Magnus the Merciless sighed in relief. He didn't fancy dying anytime soon.

**Stoick grabs one of the wooden sticks sharpened earlier and throws it at the monster, hitting it near the eye and actually making it flinch slightly.**

**The Red Death turns around to see the two of them, and lowers its head to the ground to get a better view of the two puny Vikings who had dared challenge its rule.**

Stoick bit back an angry retort at 'puny', but only because it was a tense moment and he wanted to see how it would end. As massive as that thing was, no one could call him 'puny' and get away with it.

For a brief moment, a thought passed through the minds of the twins, Astrid and Hiccup, perhaps the first and last thought ever shared among those four. _'Now you know how it feels to be thin in a tribe of giants.'_

Gobber just ignored the jab. That monster could call just about anything 'puny' and be pretty much in the right.

**Its head swings from Stoick to Gobber, who yells at it, "Come on! Fight me!"**

**"No, me!" Stoick shouts as well, getting the Red Death's attention.**

**The monster turns to Stoick, choosing its target, and rears back to strike, gas building up in its mouth with a deep, angry growl. The roar builds up in intensity and volume, before…**

**An explosion rocks the back of its head, distracting it and interrupting the fire.**

**Stoick looks up, shocked and surprised by the sudden explosion.**

**Suddenly, from the smoke behind the Red Death's head the teens appear, riding the dragons from the arena. "Yeah!" Hiccup cheers for the well-aimed strike.**

"The cavalry has arrived!" Snotlout cheered as he and the other teens jumped up, ecstatic. "Snotlout, Snotlout, oi oi oi!"

"Let's kick some butts!" Ruffnut exclaimed, punching her twin for good measure. He didn't seem to mind it much though.

Even Fishlegs was grinning nervously, secretly happy he was there to save his parents and his village.

Astrid smiled, feeling a weight lift from her shoulders, and glanced at Hiccup, who had a determined and relieved smile as well. "I guess we got there on time after all."

"I guess we did," he replied with a grin.

**Hiccup and Astrid are riding on the Nadder, the twins have a head of the Zippleback each, Snotlout is on the Nightmare and Fishlegs is riding the Gronckle. "Ruff, Tuff, watch your backs!" Hiccup calls out. "Move, Fishlegs!"**

"Drill sergeant," Fishlegs mumbled, suddenly less enthusiastic. If Hiccup expected them to be as good as he was at flying a dragon, he was sorely mistaken.

"Weak-chinned tyrant," Tuffnut mumbled as well, glaring daggers at Hiccup's back. Regardless of the fact he had just told them to be careful. Which, considering how much the twins loved bodily harm, might've actually been a good reason for them to be offended.

**Stoick watches in awe, mouthing a breathless "What…".**

**"Look at us, we're on a dragon!" Tuffnut calls out as he unsteadily rides Barf and Belch with his sister. The view switches to Snotlout on Hookfang and Fishlegs barely hanging onto Meatlug as he keeps cheering. "We're on a dragon, all of us!"**

**On the ground, the Vikings watch in shock, forgetting even to flee.**

**The dragons and their riders fly wide around the Red Death before turning around to face it again.**

**On the ground, Gobber approaches Stoick, both still looking up at the new riders. "Every bit of the boar-headed stubborn Viking you ever were," he comments to his Chief, who can only nod in shocked wonder.**

Hiccup blushed slightly and looked down. Gobber probably didn't know that, but that praise meant the world to him. As much as he valued his uniqueness, he had always looked up to his father. His father and Astrid had been his idols his entire life, but his father had been his role model, not anyone else. He'd always aspired to be like his father, not matter how careless of a parent he was.

Even if Gobber had just commented on and compared him to his father in terms of stubbornness, it was still something. It still meant he clearly saw something of his father in him. Beside him, Astrid smiled and released him from her hug-hold, since he had calmed down. Perhaps she didn't truly understand just how much it meant to him, but she knew why it meant that much, and she could relate.

He finally was _that boy_.

Even though he was on a dragon, disowned and probably cast out as well, there to save both his village and his dragon from a threat he shouldn't have known about in the first place.

Life really loved irony.

_**A**__**aaaand cut!**_

_**I know it's a little bit shorter than most chapters, at around 8k… So, after this AN, there will be two Omakes, to bring it up to 12k.**_

_**If you don't know what an Omake is, well it's kinda like a oneshot, but it usually has little intro or plotbuilding. It's usually used for comedy or for a bit of insight on something, or it can be the bare-bone idea for an actual oneshot/story.**_

_**I'm using a lot of newlines so to make some space.**_

_**Commentary on the Omakes at the end of the Omake. Spoiler – the first one is called 'Truth (or Dare) Post-RTTE', but it's actually about insight on the show, rather than actual comedy.**_

/-/

_Truth (or Dare) Post-RTTE_

Looking around while wearing his dad's clothes over his own, Hiccup smiled as he saw his friends having fun. True, playing Spill or Die (twins' name, not his) as their goodbye activity with Heather, Dagur and Mala before they headed back to Berk for good hadn't been his idea and he had initially been against it, but now he could see that it was really working. Everyone seemed to be having fun, despite the abundance of embarrassing truths or dares.

"Come on, spin the bottle, spin it!"

He was broken out of his reverie by Ruffnut's voice encouraging her twin brother to spin the bottle, which would choose the next wielder of the power of Spill or Die, who would then be able to choose their victim.

He looked down just in time to see the bottle stop with its neck pointing at him… or more like at his legs, which were sprawled out in front of him, but still technically him.

"Hiccup!" Ruffnut and Tuffnut cried at the same time from where they were sitting opposite of him and Astrid. "Your turn!"

Hiccup glanced around. The game had been going on for several hours and they had basically ran out of good truths or dares. By now they were just asking truths to find out funny secrets about each other, which was fine and all, but which kind of didn't reflect the spirit of the game any more. And it also made it much more difficult to choose a target.

_'Snotlout just went, the twins? No, I don't want to put out another fire. Fishlegs has had enough embarrassment, Heather would just get revenge in any way possible, Dagur is crazy and Mala is crazy for Dagur, so that only leaves…'_ He turned to his left, where Astrid was leaning against him, and smiled. "Astrid, Spill or Die?"

"I think I'd rather spill, if you don't mind," she grinned back, casting a little glance at the twins. Asking people to choose to 'die' for a game was such a them thing.

"Mmh…" Truth to be told, ironically, Hiccup didn't really have anything to ask her. He already knew everything he wanted to know and more, and there was little he didn't already know anyway.

Then, a relatively recent memory popped up, and he smiled. "Astrid, do you remember when Dad was injured by Krogan's Flyers?"

"Yes?"

"Do you remember the story you told me, about what would've happened hadn't I shot Toothless down?" Hiccup ignored his dragon's grumble behind him. He knew neither of them really regretted it anyway. And besides, he'd lost a leg too. "There was a detail about it that left me really confused, but I didn't have the time to ask you back then and then it slipped my mind. In that story, you were betrothed to Snotlout… not Fishlegs or even Tuffnut, _Snotlout_, the guy whose very existence you despise. So, why is that?"

"Wait, you were betrothed to _Snotlout_?!" Heather exclaimed, horrified. "How comes no one told me about this?!" Dagur and Mala both looked like they agreed, shocked speechless.

"It was just a story, it never happened," Astrid immediately reassured her best friend – best friend after Hiccup and Stormfly of course. Then she turned to her boyfriend. "And well, do you remember the Flightmare?"

"Yeah?"

"I only managed to restore my family's honour thanks to you. Hadn't you been there, hadn't you shot down Toothless and made peace with the dragons, I would've either died or I would've disgraced my family further," she explained with a sad sigh. Hiccup frowned. "And I really love my parents, but they _were_ one of the reasons why I trained so hard. So they would've probably arranged for me to be betrothed to Snotlout, since he was the most respected boy around my age at the time, to regain some of my family's honour."

Heather and Dagur both made a disgusted sound, earning themselves a 'Hey!' from the boy in question.

"What?! I met your parents even before the war ended, they would've never done that!" Hiccup protested, shocked by her tale.

Astrid just shrugged. "You met them when I was the most respected teen on Berk, the girl everyone thought would become the greatest Shieldmaiden of Berk. But on Berk, no honour meant you were nothing, at the time."

"Yeah, I remember that," Hiccup agreed, his frown deepening.

"Wait, are you saying Berk was such a horrible place?" Heather asked, having never seen it during the war.

"Worse," Fishlegs explained. "Hiccup was ostracised all his life despite being the Chief's son and heir of Berk just because he was skinny and untrained. Normally, something like that would be punished with death or at least jail time, but since he was so disliked…"

"And the first point is moot since he wasn't the only one who lacked meat on their bones," Ruffnut added, gesturing to herself, her brother and Astrid.

"Well, I guess I know the first law I'll pass as soon as I'm Chief," Hiccup muttered, his eyes stormy and unquiet as he stared at the floor. "I'll have arranged marriages be forbidden by law…"

"That's probably not going to stop the ones really trying, but thanks," Astrid smiled at him, placing a hand on his shoulder. He smiled back. "And for the record, dragon master or not, I would've still chosen you."

"For power or simply because I was the lesser evil?" he joked, earning himself a small shove from the girl.

"I'll leave that up to you." She scooted a little closer and leaned on him more, just shy of leaning her head on his shoulder. "But I definitely didn't start liking you just because you became famous."

Hiccup smiled before frowning as he caught the other Riders' expression. The only way he could describe them was 'awwww', from all of them, even Snotlout.

He coughed, blushing slightly, and stood up, pulling Astrid up with him. "Alright gang, the game is over. Let's get to packing."

_**Little explanation? Is it really needed?**_

_**Alright, I'll just say it real quick.**_

_**There are hints thorough the series that Astrid actually liked Hiccup even before HTTYD1, and just never acted on it and ignored it.**_

_**I'm not making Astrid's parents assholes, by the way, that's just my view on what would happen. Without Hiccup, Astrid wouldn't have been able to do anything to the Flightmare, which would've continued to haunt Berk. Even if she lived, she would've been disgraced, and we all know what Hiccup went through because of his own 'dishonour' (as if being born were to be a dishonour).**_

_**Now, one of the ways for Vikings to restore their honour is to unite their family to one well-known and loved. And Snotlout clearly liked Astrid, so he would've accepted a 'disgraced' (I hate writing this word every time) betrothed anyway.**_

_**I still think that that detail of Astrid's story doesn't really make sense, since even then marrying the Heir of Berk would be better – even if your social status goes down because of him, he's still going to be the next Chief, and you're gonna be Chieftess. Joke's on them. But since that is canon, I decided to add this little bit to basically train and explain what the hell happened.**_

_**Next Omake!**_

/-/

_Omake after Mi Amore Wing_

Astrid Hofferson had rarely felt as much peace, warmth and quiet happiness as she was feeling now, sitting on the edge of the Clubhouse's platform and looking at the sea under the night sky. Stormfly wasn't too far away, both in case she needed to saddle up and move quickly, and simply because they were friends and they liked to spend time together – all the Riders were very close to their dragons. Although no one could beat Hiccup and Toothless – seeing one without the other was almost always a sign of dire trouble.

Thinking about Hiccup made her feel even warmer, to the point where she knew she was probably blushing a little bit. Not enough to be noticeable, but still there. Her mind went back to the conversation she had had with the boy a handful of minutes earlier.

_"I love you Astrid Hofferson, with everything I have. And I always will."_

If it was girly to replay those words in her mind, then she would accept being called girly, because at the moment, replaying that sentence every two minutes was all she wanted to do.

They had declared their love for each other many times, even before being betrothed – although with a more platonic meaning. But that time it had been special. It wasn't something said after a kiss or while cuddling together.

While she still felt that she wouldn't mind getting more kisses from Hiccup, she knew what she'd done had been childish and that she'd hurt him too. True, he hadn't paid a lot of attention to her, but in hindsight he had been under a lot of pressure, given how he was the supreme leader in the war against the Hunters. Everyone relied on him and looked at him for answers. And he relied on her. But instead of accepting that blind trust as a sign of love, she'd wanted something more similar to what Mala and Dagur had… even though she admitted she was grossed out by the two of them.

She still thought Hiccup _should've_ noticed the betrothal necklace, especially since she never wore it in fear of losing it during a battle or something. But knowing that despite the -admittedly immense- pressure on him for being the leader, he'd still gone out of his way to let her know that he loved her and that he hadn't meant to make her feel alone, well she admitted that felt really great.

And of course that kiss had been worth the entire day of jealousy and hurt. She'd always known Hiccup was a great kisser but still, that kiss had been the best they'd shared yet.

"So Astrid, wanna join Team Jorgenson?"

Her shoulders slumped and she put on a flat deadpan as the most annoying Viking she'd ever known sat down beside her. Not too close, for his own health, but not far enough.

"The answer is still the same I gave you back after the whole 'failed marriage' episode," she replied. He just stared at her clueless, and she rolled her eyes. "Never, Snotlout. Never."

"Oh, right, you're just in denial," he waved her off, ignoring her deadpan. Then he frowned. "Wait, why haven't you hurt me yet?" He stared at her suspiciously. "You're not this friendly… ever. Not with me at least."

"I guess even you can't ruin the moment," Astrid responded, returning to look at the night sea with a smile. "Although you do come close."

"Riiiiight…" he drawled, not totally convinced.

Silence fell between the two, but Astrid could see there was still something on his mind.

He kept fidgeting, moving his hands often. At first he was leaning with his hands laid out on the wood behind him, but then he curled up with his hands on his lap, and then he straightened up by putting his hands on his knees. He also kept glancing at her and opening his mouth to speak, but he closed it before he could and returned to pretend to be looking at the ocean.

She normally wouldn't have cared, but she was in a good mood, so she decided to help him out. "Any other reason why you came all the way up here?" she asked. "Aside from annoying me, of course."

"Well…" Snotlout frowned indecisively, looking down at his feet. He drummed his fingers on his knees for a while before continuing. "Yeah… It's just…"

"What is it, Snotlout?" she asked again, this time a bit more forcefully. As much as she was in a good mood, she had zero intentions of spending any more time with Snotlout than she strictly needed to. He was a friend, but he was the annoying friend one couldn't wait to get away from.

"I think you went too hard on Hiccup today!" he exclaimed quickly, wincing and closing his eyes as if he expected to be hit. Peeking one eye open to check if she'd moved, which she hadn't, he continued, ignoring her surprised expression. "I mean, not that I care or anything, it's just… well, today wasn't really a Hiccstrid day, was it?"

"What are you talking about?" she questioned him. Snotlout _never_ noticed anything subtle and love problems were definitely way out of his intellectual reach. Had she and Hiccup been _that_ obvious?

Yes, yes they had, she told herself, but that still didn't explain why was Snotlout talking about it.

"Look, Hiccup's just human and no one but the Snotman is perfect." She snorted. Of course he'd manage to squeeze some bragging and narcissism in as well. "And he's been under a lot of pressure with, you know, the war and everything." He scratched the back of his neck, probably feeling awkward. He _was_ out of his comfort zone, so it made sense. "I guess what I'm trying to say is… we all know Hiccup loves you more than anything. We actually had to tell you to stop being so clingy back when we lost the Edge because you two were attached at the hip. If he had to choose between you and everything else, I'm not sure what he'd choose. Just because he didn't focus on you today doesn't mean he doesn't love you." He made a sound of disgust. "Ugh, why am I even doing this?!"

"Snotlout, where did this come from?" Astrid smiled in amusement. Snotlout, trying to give her a pep talk about romance, specifically a romance that didn't involve him? That was new. "I never took you as a love expert… I didn't even think you cared at all."

"I don't!" he protested, trying to protect his 'manly pride', a concept almost as dumb as Snotlout himself. "It's just… you know… oh, forget it!" He threw his hands up in the air and got up. "I just thought that if you were dumb enough to think even for a moment that Hiccup doesn't love you, simply because of _one single day_ where you two aren't attached to the hip, then I could give you a wake-up call, but whatever!"

Astrid blinked, surprised by his claim. Not that she hadn't known that already – that was exactly what she'd meant when she'd told Hiccup she was being silly. They were _always_ together, even before they got engaged, so she shouldn't have based her assumptions on just that day, jealousy or not.

What actually surprised her was that _Snotlout_ of all people would specifically seek her out to ensure her relationship with Hiccup wouldn't be damaged by the whole day's events.

She smiled at him. As annoying as he was, well, he was still a friend. "Thank you, Snotlout, I appreciate the concern. You're not as bad as you usually act." He turned around with a sound of surprise, not having expected the praise. "But don't worry, I already knew all of that. And Hiccup and I are okay now, probably even better than before."

"What?!" he exclaimed, staring at her in disbelief. "You mean I came all the way up here, came up with a whole speech, ignored my own awesomeness to praise _Hiccup_ of all people, and it was all for nothing because you already knew?!"

Astrid nodded, her smile turning into an amused grin. "Thank you for summing that up."

"Argh!" He turned around and stomped away. "This is why I'm not nice to people! It's just a bunch of pointless worry that ends up being for nothing!"

Astrid burst out in pearls of laughter. Of course he'd say that.

As Snotlout's angry huffs faded away, Astrid turned back to the ocean, just in time to see a very familiar black dragon fly out of the hut with the purple roof and head towards the Clubhouse.

Stormfly got up and screeched at Toothless, who warbled back as his rider dismounted and walked up to her, leaving the two dragons to play. "Hi Astrid, mind having company?"

"Sure," she smiled at him as he plopped down beside her. "I thought you'd be asleep by now."

"Ah well, as opposite to what people think, sleeping really isn't the best way to unwind after a stressful day," he admitted, rubbing his neck with slight nervousness. "I saw you out here and I decided to come up and talk a bit."

"Well, I'm not going anywhere." She scooted closer when he wrapped an arm around her, and she placed her head on his shoulder.

"And neither am I."

_**AN, finally! And prepare for a lot of insight on this episode's Hiccstrid. If you like Hiccstrid, I suggest you read this AN. Otherwise… you can skip it.**_

_**So, I know this will feel like a rant, but please don't take it badly. I'm just pointing out a few things that I'm sure some will have noticed, but that I feel like I have to point out.**_

_**Mi Amore Wing is considered to be a very important episode for Hiccstrid and from a certain point of view, I can understand. It's not their first fight but it's the first time their relationship is at stake…**_

…

_**Except it isn't. Not even close. It's just one bad day that doesn't even really influence their relationship, because Astrid still stands by Hiccup no matter what, and THAT'S the real base of their relationship. They are always there for each other. Always.**_

_**In this episode, their apparent 'break-up' felt, in my opinion, kinda forced. Not as in unrealistic… more like, it's a 'break-up' that is only apparent, never leads to actual damage to their romance, and happened only because a series of very specific events took place at a very specific time. It's not a real break-up, it's a bad day for Astrid and Hiccup.**_

_**In this episode, Hiccup time and again noticed and questioned Astrid about what was wrong. In all other episodes, if Astrid wanted him to know something (note: if she wanted), then she would've told him right away. In this case her jealousy and hurt made her not tell him. So had she been any less jealous of D&M (gross!) or any less hurt by Hiccup's apparent carelessness, this whole episode wouldn't have been so important for Hiccstrid. Most of it wouldn't have happened in the first place.**_

_**But let's observe the reason why it happened – Hiccup's perceived distance and carelessness, which in all other episodes would be laughable since Hiccstrid is always attached at the hip, even more so once they get together. But we must also take in consideration just how much Hiccup had on his plate as the actual leader of the whole alliance against the Hunters.**_

_**I'm not saying he shouldn't have acted like that, I'm just saying he had reasons to have a lot on his mind… and Astrid would normally know. She's the one who refuses to let him carry the burden on his own every time. She's the one who reminds him that he's not alone when leading. So she should know just how much pressure he's under.**_

_**Hiccup and Astrid have a relationship, as Hiccup says in this episode, built on years of trust. Which is the solidest base, in my opinion. They know each other better than anyone else… sometimes better than they know themselves. Sometimes they even just get random feelings of danger about the other! That's supposed to be a twin thing (true fact, I have a twin and it works), but okay~.**_

_**Even more proof, Astrid and Hiccup both recognize their wrongdoing before the day's even over (at the end, at sunset). As soon as they aren't under strong pressure any more, they solve their issue with no problem because THERE IS NO issue in the first place.**_

_**I know this will piss off people who don't ship Hiccstrid or just think that it's more fragile than that, but the point is… the bond between Hiccup and Astrid is just as strong as the bond between Hiccup and Toothless, though it's obviously different.**_

_**If you ship something else, that's fine. I may be a hardcore Hiccstrid shipper, but other than Hiccstrid I don't have preferences on other HTTYD ships. I like a few but it doesn't bother me to not see them together. And for other fandoms I never have a preference (though I have dislikes), so really, even if I love Hiccstrid to death, I'm not saying people should always ship it…**_

_**This being said…**_

_**HICCSTRID IS FOREVER!**_

_**Unbroken and impossible to defeat. The series AND the movies clearly show this, no questions asked. Drama can be added without 'breaking them up'. I'm sorry if this offends people who ship others, but this is simply what you can gather from the show.**_

_**Not only they are forever, but they are also more mature than the other Riders and thus less likely to have problems for stupid reasons. In Family Matters, Astrid ignores Hiccup's orders twice for Garffiljord (baby Death Song, not so baby now), but she blames herself for it after things go badly. It's harder to give an example for Hiccup since he's the leader and thus his decisions usually influence everyone, not just Astrid. But as much as I loved the Dragonfly project, he did piss off Astrid with his recklessness. The point is… they always solve their issues, so Mi Amore Wing wasn't a real break-up, just a bad day.**_

_**So yeah, this AN was mostly to tell Hiccstrid shippers… HICCSTRID IS FOREVER.**_

_**I could go on listing why by giving insight on how they act with each other, but that would make this AN WAAAAAAY too long since there is so much to say. But if you want, you can say it in the reviews yourselves!**_

_**So, Hiccstrid fans, CHEER WITH ME! WEEEEEEEEEE!**_

_**Until next time,**_

_**Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh.**_


	15. Battle of the Nest and Aftermath

**_Sorry so much for the extremely long wait. I had a lot of work for a month, and then I got sick. On top of that, I wanted to finish this story, so this chapter is freaking 15k words. Fifteen thousands. 15,000 words. However you want to write it, it was huge. And I wrote around 10k of it today, working on it nonstop since I didn't know when I could've had the time in the next few days._**

**_Hope you enjoy the end of the first movie!_**

Hiccup was smiling. As much as everyone still was in danger, he couldn't help the happy feeling growing in his chest. He'd lived up to his father's standards. Not in the Viking way, he doubted he'd ever be able to do anything the Viking way, but in his own way.

It was an exhilarating feeling.

"What do you mean, _stubborn_ and _boar-headed_?!" Stoick inquired, glaring at Gobber, who chuckled slightly nervously.

"Well, it wasn't _me_ who ignored the warnings of the only one who'd actually _been_ at the Nest," the blacksmith replied candidly, for once grateful that there was a dragon between him and the scowling Chief.

"How could I have known-"

"That he was telling the truth?" Gobber looked incredulous. "Maybe by listening to him?"

"How was I supposed to know it wasn't just some lie to save his dragon friends?!" Stoick thundered, slamming a fist down on his knee.

"Yet you immediately believed him when he said only a dragon could find the Nest?" Fishlegs piped up shyly.

"That's not because I believed him, it was because his words inspired an idea," the Chief stubbornly replied, crossing his arms like an oversized child. Every teen plus Gobber stared blankly at him, but he wasn't the Chief for nothing and he didn't crack.

"Okay, can we just get back to this 'movie'?" Hookfang snorted, accidentally setting Snotlout's ass on fire again. _'Yeah, I can totally see this becoming my favourite hobby.'_

"He's not wrong, we're kind of in the middle of a big fight," Toothless agreed with a nod.

"You're not off the hook yet, Stoick," Gobber reminded his friend, shaking his prosthetic hook.

"Whatever you say, Gobber," the Chief replied blandly, staring straight ahead.

Gobber rolled his eyes and shook his head with a sigh. Chief and Heir were both more stubborn than he was persistent, so it was really hard to actually get them to change their minds or even just listen to him. At least he knew that in this particular occasion, Stoick already knew he was right, and was just being, again, stubborn.

**The teens, on their dragons, fly in a circle to keep within earshot of each other. "Fishlegs, break it down!" Hiccup orders.**

**"Okay!" Fishlegs is shown riding the Gronckle, panting slightly. "Heavily armoured skull and tail made for bashing and crushing. Steer clear of both. Small eyes, large nostrils, relies on hearing and smell." While he's saying that, the Red Death picks up a boat in its jaws and throws it again a pillar of rock nearby, shattering the ship.**

**Near its feet, the Vikings are still running.**

"Never thought I'd say this, but good job Fishface," Snotlout clapped the taller boy on the back, for once honestly impressed with the teen's dragon knowledge. It also helped that for once, it wasn't pointless blabbering about dragons they would fight under the supervision of one of Berk's best dragon killers and thus blabbering they might actually _need_. And the giant dragon was an extra that really tipped the scale.

"Th-Thanks…"

All the Ingermans, not just Fishlegs's direct relatives, smiled at the sight. It was good to see the kind-hearted boy finally being recognized for his talent, especially since it was _Snotlout_ who had said it.

**"Okay. 'Lout, 'Legs, hang in its blind spot, make some noise, keep it confused!" Hiccup orders the two teens as they circle around. Unable to ride his own dragon, Hiccup is riding on the Nadder with Astrid clinging to his waist. Smart choice, always have the most experienced drive.**

Stormfly rolled her eyes. As if she needed a human to 'drive' her. Hiccup's timing with Toothless might've been extraordinary, but she'd literally been born with wings for a reason.

**"Ruff, Tuff, try to find out if it has a shot limit. Make it mad."**

**Ruff puffs out her chest in pride. "That's my specialty!" she claims happily, before frowning when her twin protests, "Since when, everyone knows I'm more irritating. See?" He then turns his head of the Zippleback upside down and starts blabbering and making weird noises.**

**"Just do what I told you!" Hiccup tells them, proving that at least, they managed to irritate ****_him_****. "I'll be back as soon as I can!" He then peels off with the Nadder, Astrid giving one last salute (or maybe reminder to the teens to do as Hiccup said).**

"Likely the latter," Snotlout commented, still munching on that Thor-damned mutton. "Not that we wouldn't have followed his orders otherwise, because frankly I'd much rather listen to the guy who knows a lot about dragons, rather than just go ahead and try to fight that thing, but she probably thought she needed to remind us constantly."

"Can you blame her, you guys weren't exactly the definition of friends to me before… well, ever." To tell the truth, they _had_ been friends, great friends, back when they were little kids. They had just grown up and taken different roads. While he was stuck at the starting line due to his 'runtiness' or whatever other flaw his father would come up with that day.

"Easy, H, he didn't say she shouldn't have, he just said it was redundant," Ruffnut spoke up, surprisingly defending Snotlout.

"You know what else is redundant?" Magmascale asked, irritated. "Your chatter while we're trying to watch how the war ends without the Blood Tyrant devouring everyone!"

"Calm do-"

The poor blue Gronckle who had tried to soothe the Nightmare's was rudely interrupted when said Nightmare spat napalm fire at her.

**"Don't worry, we got it covered!" Snotlout reassures him as Fishlegs agrees and whoops.**

"Are you _excited_?" Astrid asked incredulously, turning to look at the husky teen. "Are you insane?"

Fishlegs tried to shrink as much as he could, which wasn't much anyway. "What? Sometimes I get caught in the moment…"

**The teens fly off, behind the Red Death and then up its back to stay out of sight for as long as possible.**

**The twins go right while the others go left, and the Zippleback flies right in front of the monsters while the twins make the perfect commentary.**

**"Troll!"**

**"Butt-elf!"**

**"Bride of Grendel!"**

**The two cackle as they fly away and then yelp in alarm when the Red Death's angered blast missed them by mere feet as the Zippleback ducks.**

"Butt-elf?" asked Snotlout. "And what's Grendel?"

"My dear Snotman, a butt-elf is exactly what its name implies, a tiny sprite that lives in the rectal apparatus of dragons and other large creatures," Tuffnut explained, gaining a posh accent out of nowhere and freaking out everyone sitting around him – aside his sister, obviously, who was looking as posh as he was. "And Grendel is a mythological monster from the relatively recent poem of _Beowulf_, a great warrior and later king, poem that sees Grendel take the role of the first of the three antagonists, followed by Grendel's own mother and, ironically fitting, a dragon."

Everyone stared at the twins in absolute shock while the two returned to watch the movie. Now that they thought about it, while it was obvious that the twins were idiots, there was the little detail that no one ever managed to fully stop them from playing pranks. Planning a prank required intelligence. Were the twins secretly genius?

**Snotlout and Fishlegs fly beside the head of the Red Death, banging their hammers against their shields (where did they get those?!) to try and disorient it.**

"Are you sure that's gonna work on something so big?" asked Meatlug, doubtful. "Its roars are far louder."

"Any dragon's roar is far louder," Gobber shrugged, not really seeing the point.

"Perhaps it's because of the vibrations and the high pitch of the metallic sound, rather than the actual volume of the noise?" Fishlegs hypothesised hesitantly.

"That's actually more likely than just the noise," Stormfly agreed. "When you live with dragons, metal banging over metal is basically quiet."

**Irritated, the Red Death opens all of its eyes – three on each side of its head. Fishlegs takes note. "Uh… this thing doesn't have a blind spot!" he calls out, probably hoping for a safer change of plans.**

"That's one ugly mother-" the Viking was cut off by her neighbour, who pointed at the kids in the room, who had been in silent awe thorough the entire movie. They basically had stars in their eyes by then. The Viking who had been about to cuss begrudgingly shut up, not wanting to corrupt the younger children already.

**Meanwhile, Hiccup and Astrid are flying around on the Nadder. After a turn, Hiccup points down at the burning ships, spotting Toothless's wriggling form amidst the flames. "There!"**

**He steers the Nadder towards the ships while behind them, the Red Death is looking annoyed at the several teens (with dragons) surrounding it. Hiccup hands the 'reigns' (it's a rope) over to Astrid, who looks quite worried (about driving, maybe?) and stands up before jumping off, landing on the deck of the ship, right in front of Toothless.**

**Looking back up at his ****_girl friend_****, Hiccup shouts a final order, "Go help the others!", before he turns to try and help his dragon. Astrid and Nadder fly off, disappearing from view.**

**Hiccup pulls on Toothless's leather mouth restraint and successfully removes it "Okay, hold on, hold on," he tries to reassure the dragon, grabbing a broken spear to try and pry him free.**

"I don't think you can really break those chains, Hiccup," Fishlegs said nervously. "I mean, if Toothless, who is a _Night Fury_, couldn't, well…"

Hiccup shrugged. "Do you have any other idea?"

**Meanwhile, the Red Death, with the remnants of a ship still stuck in its teeth, is swaying slightly, disoriented by the metallic banging. Fishlegs cheers, happy to be still alive against all odds. "Yes! It's working!"**

**The view pans down to show Meatlug, and then also Hookfang, being disoriented by the noise just as well, flying unsteadily.**

"I should've thought about that!" Hiccup exclaimed, frustrated that he'd forgotten their dragons would get influenced just as much, if not even more than the gigantic Queen.

"Have I ever told you you're great at messing up?" Snotlout remarked with a grin.

"Thanks," the boy gritted out, glaring daggers at the stouter teen.

"You were _on_ the dragon that was getting disoriented, and you didn't even notice?" Astrid retorted, shutting the Jorgenson up. "Yeah, that's what I thought."

**Soon, Hookfang loses control and bumps into the Red Death's head, sending Snotlout flying. The boy lands on the head of the monsters and stops just short of falling off, but loses shield and mace, that tumble off onto the ground over a hundred feet below.**

Everyone sighed in relief, especially Snotlout, who started to check himself for injuries and then, realizing it had only happened on the screen, started to check his onscreen self for injuries – he couldn't afford having his beautiful face ruined, after all!

"Well, that doesn't look too safe," Hookfang commented, seemingly unconcerned. Inwardly, he was slightly relieved he hadn't lost his rider before he even got one, but he had a reputation to uphold!

"Thank you, useless reptile," Snotlout grumbled, repeating almost word-by-word what Hiccup told Toothless.

**Likewise, Meatlug starts to spin uncontrollably and flies down, swaying heavily. "Uh-oh, I've lost power on the Gronckle!" Fishlegs yells, worried, before throwing his hammer at Snotlout, who manages to catch it – though it does push him back against the Red Death's scales. "Snotlout, do something!"**

"'I've lost power on the Gronckle'?" Snotlout repeated, incredulous, after he finished checking his onscreen self for injuries. "Seriously, Fishface?"

"What?" he defended himself. "I was under stress!"

"Technically, you _will be_ under stress, since this hasn't happened yet," Tuffnut pointed out with a flourish before he adopted a serious expression. "Or has it?"

"Are you implying what I think you're implying, my dear brother Nut?" Ruff inquired, sharing a glance and a grin with her twin. "Could Fishlegs…"

"…not be from our time…"

_"But be from the future?"_ they both finished at the same time, wearing matching cheeky grins.

Everyone else just either ignored them or rolled their eyes.

**The Gronckle spins and spins before crashing onto the black sand of the ground. Fishlegs cheers, waving his hands in relief. "I'm okay!" he calls out just before the momentum turns the Gronckle upside-down, which ends up with Fishlegs underneath. "…less okay…"**

Several snickers were heard, making him blush, although his parents looked worried. Their boy wasn't a fighter yet he was trying his hardest. They just hoped he wouldn't get hurt.

**The Red Death, noticing boy and Gronckle on the ground, growls and raises a gigantic paw to crush them. Seeing this, Fishlegs yelps in terror and tries to crawl away.**

**"I can't miss!" Snotlout yells in… self-encouragement?… as he whacks the monster's eyes with the hammer, forcing it to wince and close them. "What's wrong, buddy, got something in your eye?"**

"Thank you so much, Snotlout," Fishlegs's mother praised him, going as far as to bow down. Not enough to be kneeling, but still more than enough to stoke Snotlout's ego.

"Nice joke, too," Hiccup nodded smiling. "Especially considering how much stress you must be in, with being on its head and in the middle of a battle."

"That was a gutsy move, Snotlout," Astrid complimented him as well, her respect from him going from zero to at least two or three. Out of infinity, that is.

All the praise were almost making his head spin. Snotlout flashed everyone a cocky grin and a thumbs-up, but inwardly he was reeling. True, his future self had pulled off a badass move with a badass comment to go with it, but this particular kind of praise was unfamiliar to him. It was kinda like how he felt whenever his dad was happy he won the Thawfest games.

Was that how it felt to be honestly appreciated? That was new, but he couldn't say it wasn't welcome. It was definitely welcome at any time! And if making smart or at least sarcastic comments like that one earned him bonus points, then great! He'd start working on it as soon as possible!

**Irritated by the hits, the Red Death roars and stomps down, missing Fishlegs by mere feet.**

Everyone sighed in relief _again_, especially Fishlegs, who had just seen his life flash before his eyes.

If that kept up, and considering how dangerous flying even _near_ that thing was that was likely to happen again, everyone in Berk would get white hair before even hitting fifty (and few had reached as far as fifty, with the war and all).

**Astrid flies in on her Nadder and sees Snotlout still hammering away at the monster's eyes. "Yeah, you're the Viking!"**

"What does even mean?" Stormfly asked, confused.

"You try to give him an actual compliment," the Shieldmaiden-to-be replied, rolling her eyes. "Besides, I told him what he wanted to hear, no?"

"Hey!"

**Snotlout looks up at her with a semi-incredulous smile, not expecting the praise, and missing the fact that the eye he was stepping on was looking right at him. He hammers the middle eye of the row, not even watching where he was hitting. Annoyed and now with a target, the Red Death shakes its head, dislodging the boy and almost tossing him off.**

**"Whoa!" Snotlout loses the hammer, which tumbles down, but he manages to hold onto one of the monster's neck ridges with his right hand, looking down at the ground far below.**

"That was way too close for comfort!" Snotlout exclaimed, scared for himself for the second time in less than five minutes. "Where are you guys! We're supposed to be fighting this together!"

"They're probably trying, Snotlout, but none of your dragons' flames is doing any damage against the Queen," Hiccup reminded him. He almost put a hand on his shoulder to comfort him, but then he thought better. "Honestly I'm not even sure if _Toothless_ can do anything against it."

Toothless thought about it, and eventually shrugged. "No idea."

Snotlout, meanwhile, was having the oddest inner conflict. It was odd because it shouldn't have been there in the first place! But he did feel the slightest bit disappointed when Hiccup retracted his hand. Not that he wanted to be comforted by him of all people, but at least it would've been something. His future self was the one risking his life the most at the moment, and he would've really even if not outwardly appreciated some support.

Of course, he didn't _need_ it, because the only support Vikings needed were the support beams for the houses, or at least so his dad always said…

…

Perhaps he and Hiccup had more in common than anyone would think.

**Distracted by the teens and their dragons, the Red Death turns around, possibly following Astrid, and smashes its tail on the burning ships, destroying a good bunch of them.**

**As he's working on freeing Toothless, with no success so far to be precise, Hiccup is surprised as a charred mast crashes on the deck right in front of them, throwing him aside.**

**The Red Death then stomps down, hitting their ship and trashing it completely, throwing boy and dragon in the water, surrounded by a bajillion bubbles.**

"Hiccup!" shouted Stoick, deafening the teens and the Night Fury, who had had the misfortune of sitting near him. Or well, to be honest, he had sat beside them not too long prior, so it wasn't really their fault.

"Dad, I'm here and I'm safe and sound, although I can't say the same for my eardrums," the boy piped up from right beside him. It was a small miracle all by itself that he hadn't already gone deaf after living with the man for fifteen years.

Stoick looked at his left, then looked down, meeting his son's deadpan stare. The mighty Chief of course hid a cough into his beard. "Right. Well, you may be safe, but if this is the future, then it's bound to happen, and if you get hurt…"

Hiccup wanted to roll his eyes -if death was his future, well he'd just have to change it- but he suppressed the urge for his father's sake. He knew _he_ was worried about the others, so he couldn't fault people for being worried about him. "Dad, I'll be fine," he stressed before reaching out with a hand to pet Toothless from over Astrid's shoulders. The dragon purred lightly – Toothless was actually really glad he could still make dragon noises even with his newfound voice – and the boy relaxed ever so slightly. "I'm more worried about Toothless…"

Said dragon immediately stopped purring and glared at him. "Of course you are," he grumbled, shaking his hand off. "Stop putting me before you!"

"Sure, when _you_ stop putting _me_ before _you_."

"…You win this round, but it's not over, Hiccup."

**Toothless, still bound by chains and metal hoops, tries to roar in distress as he realizes what just happened, but almost no sound comes out. Dramatic music begins to play.**

**Hiccup determinedly swims down towards his dragon, both quickly sinking to the bottom.**

"Wait a second, weren't the ships basically _on_ the shore?" Fishlegs asked, confused.

"Yeah, and I remember one of the ships scraping against something in the water earlier," Snotlout added, frowning slightly in thought.

"The shore may look like it's just a gentle slope, but it goes almost straight down as soon as you get in the water," a Scauldron explained. A few Vikings were startled, since Scauldrons weren't known for staying at the Nest but swimming freely. "Trust me, I could easily swim right up to the shore with no problem at all. And the ship must've scraped against a seastack – they have spike-like protrusions both over and under the water. It's actually pretty deep for a shore, though not ocean-deep or anything. Like, the length of one of your ships, maybe two."

**Hiccup reaches his dragon on the bottom, stopping in front of him. Toothless shakes his head, whether to try and free himself or to send him away is unknown. The boy lays a hand on his snout to tell him he's there and he's staying before grabbing one of the chains.**

"You know, for a little twig, you actually swim pretty well," Tuffnut commented, eyeing the underwater heir with a critical eye… his good critical eye.

"What does my impressive physique have to do with swimming well?" Hiccup replied sarcastically, rolling his eyes for good measure. He wasn't sure why people thought being small meant being able to do literally nothing at all, but it was annoying. Really annoying.

"Well you still need strength in your legs to do that," Ruffnut countered, pointing at the boy's skinny limbs. "Sorry Hiccup but little birds have more mass than you."

Hiccup rubbed his forehead in irritation. Another really annoying thing was that everyone always pointed out _his_ lack of body mass, but no one ever mentioned the fact that the twins and Astrid were just slightly taller than him, and no less scrawny. "Thanks a lot, Ruff."

"We're here to serve!"

**Hiccup vainly tries to pull the chain, with Toothless squirming to help him out, but it's futile.**

"Hiccup, I know this will probably be useless to you considering your… ehm-ehm, _raw Vikingness_," Stoick's little jab gathered a few chuckles from Vikings and dragons alike. Much to Hiccup's chagrin, teens and Toothless were amongst those. "But pulling on the chain is pretty much useless. You'd need a lot of strength even in normal conditions. Being underwater basically reduces your strength to zero. And not being able to breath doesn't help, really. You should've tried to break the hinges of Toothless's wooden restraint, to which the chains were attached."

Hiccup felt his irritation grow at the chuckles, but he sighed and nodded in acknowledgement to his father's advice. As embarrassing as the jab had been, it was also true. Hiccup may not have been useless but he wouldn't win strength contests anytime soon… probably never. "Thanks, Dad, for your undying support."

Stoick flinched, wondering if he'd gone too far already, but then he saw Hiccup's annoyance and relaxed, realizing it was just teenage angst over what he looked like. _'Gobber was right, it's not what you look like, son. And now it's not even what's inside.'_

"You should've tried to use a knife," Astrid added, nudging him slightly to get his attention. "Makes for better leverage than your hands, even though you can't cut through metal that easily."

**Hiccup keeps pulling the chain, but soon he runs out of air. Eyes closing, he is then grabbed by a large hand, Toothless roaring in surprise and fear as he's left behind.**

**Stoick emerges from the water, soaked and without his helmet, with a big intake of breath. He lays Hiccup down on a rock near the shore, where the boy sits up, coughing from the water he's accidentally breathed in. "Dad?" he calls out incredulously upon seeing the giant of a man in front of him.**

**Not answering, Stoick dives back into the water with another large breath.**

Stoick sighed in relief before seeing his son's worried expression. He rolled his eyes, already knowing what his future self was going to do, though seeing that his son didn't believe he would even after seeing the teens riding dragons against the Queen did hurt a little bit. It was pain he deserved, of course, for being such a dumb father for years, but it was still there.

Gobber, not too far away, glanced at his Chief, knowing what was going through his head at the moment. He felt really sorry for the man. He'd tried his best, but between a village full of whiny Vikings and the war, there was little patience left for his son's disastrous attempts at being a Viking. The two of them actually kind of got along whenever battle wasn't mentioned, but ever since Hiccup got it in his head that he needed to kill a dragon so that his dad would finally be proud of him, even the usually non-violent boy had become all but obsessed with the war.

It was truly a sad thing to think about… so, in a true Gobber fashion, he just stopped thinking about it.

"You do know he's going to go back to get your dragon, right?" Snotlout asked the heir, knowing fully well the answer was going to be a negative one. He knew his father wouldn't, but Uncle Stoick was different. He was better. Snotlout was actually kinda jealous of Hiccup. Spitelout loved him for sure, but he was really strict and demanding. He would've liked if his father stopped being so much like… well, Snotlout himself… and showed him some affection from time to time. At least Stoick wasn't afraid of showing affection toward Hiccup.

"I do. Me in the future? Not so sure."

**Underwater, Toothless is starting to feel the lack of oxygen, his head lolling down, disoriented. He perks up, alarmed, when Stoick swims up to him.**

**Viking and dragon stare at each other for a second, trying to get a read on the other, before Stoick surges forward, gripping the wooden hoop around Toothless's neck. The dragon, unaware of his true intentions, shrinks back, afraid.**

He knew he shouldn't have felt that way, but he was really proud that he could scare even a Night Fury! Granted, a tired, caged, drowning Night Fury already scared by the Queen, but still!

Then he remembered his son had actually shot down said Night Fury when he was perfectly healthy, and how the dragon had been scared and accepted death when his son went to kill him, and his ego deflated.

**He strains for a second before the metal hinges break off from the wood, freeing the dragon.**

"Yes!" Hiccup, Astrid, Fishlegs and Stoick all shouted excitedly before exchanging glances and bursting out laughing at each other's stunned faces.

"Thank you, Dad," said Hiccup, laughter receding and for once without an ounce of sarcasm in his voice.

"You're welcome, son."

**Viking and dragon stare at each other for another second, trying to get another read on each other, since the first had obviously been wrong. Then Toothless surges forwards, grabbing Stoick on the way.**

**The two of them burst from the water and the Night Fury drops the Viking on the shore with a small growl.**

"Those were some deep parallels," Ruffnut noted, in awe.

"Yeah, it really showed how both of them misjudged the other," Tuffnut replied, nodding in understanding. "It's probably a symbolic parallel that doesn't address them alone, but covers the whole meaning behind the war, Vikings and Dragons misjudging each other. It's really touching if you think about it."

Everyone else rolled their eyes. It had just been a staredown or two. Nothing to get so excited about. The fact they were still alive was what mattered. Hiccup ignored the twins to pat Toothless on the head. "Thank you too, bud."

Khor, meanwhile, was staring at the twins in shock. He hadn't thought about it that way right up until the moment the twidiots said it. How could he have overlooked it?! He was supposed to be a fan of their story, dammit!

**The dragon flies up to a rock nearby, from where he looks at the Red Death, growling and snarling at the empty air in front of it. Not the brightest dragon, it seems. The Night Fury flicks his head toward it, signalling Hiccup to get on and get going.**

"It's relatively smart, to be honest, much smarter than Terrible Terrors and lots of other dragons, but far dumber than me right now," Toothless informed everyone with a little frown. Not that anyone could tell, considering that as expressive as his snout was, he still was a dragon.

"What do you mean, _right now_?" Fishlegs inquired, eager to find out more about the Night Fury and dragons in general. That was stuff not even the Book of Dragons could help with!

"Well, spending time with Hiccup really helped… I guess that being in close contact with a human also helped me… develop a more human personality, I suppose?" He did the dragon equivalent of a shrug, shaking his head, and continued, "I've always been more intelligent and more… _complex_… than other dragons, but now the gap is much greater."

He glanced at the Nadder sitting not too far from them, the one who will soon be named Stormfly. "Look at her. At first she didn't care about anything, now she's actually given a few compliments to me and Hiccup, and she's actually managed to remember our names, instead of calling us 'the hatchling' and 'the Night Fury'. All because of what? An hour or so of being in close contact with humans?"

"I guess we've never thought about it that way before," Stormfly admitted reluctantly. Not that she minded being called intelligent, of course, but to go as far as to say that she was becoming more human… that was maybe going a little too far.

"Well, I guess it's the same for Vikings," Hiccup commented, earning himself everyone's attention. "Oh come on, don't tell me that _normal_ people run around roaring and screaming battle cries and waving sharp objects against everything that moves, including me, apparently." The Viking that had roared in his face chuckled sheepishly. "We've been fighting the dragons for so long that they have learned where we keep the food and how we usually fight, and we've learned the same as well as increasing our… uh…"

"Savagery?" Astrid suggested helpfully. "Anger issues? Violent personality?"

"Yes, all of the above. As I was saying, it's not really that surprising to see that both species learn from one another."

Khor started to bang his head against the floor, disappointed in himself for not realizing that sooner as well. Thankfully everyone was too engrossed with the future to notice him.

**"You got it, bud," Hiccup nods as he runs up to his dragon, jumping onto the saddle, hooking himself onto the harness and putting his foot on the pedal.**

**"Hiccup!" Stoick grabs his arm, stopping him. Hiccup gives him a wary look, not knowing what to expect.**

**The Chief takes a second to choose his words before he speaks, "I'm sorry. For… for everything."**

Stoick secretly took notes. He'd need to get used to talking _with_ his son, not _to_ his son or _at_ his son. The first required both of their input, the second required Hiccup to listen and the third (which was what he had been doing since forever or so it felt) was just him talking and no one listening. That needed to change. The first was acceptable. The second was ill-advised, but could still work from time to time. The third was unacceptable, completely unacceptable.

**Slightly taken aback, Hiccup nods. "Yeah, me too."**

**"You don't have to go up there," the Chief reminds him, glancing behind his son's shoulders at the gigantic dragon rampaging on the beach.**

**"We're Vikings," Hiccup reminds him, slightly amused. "It's an occupational hazard."**

A lot of laughter broke out, Snotlout and the twins first and foremost. Stoick and Hiccup, highly offended, glared at the three of them with identical scowls.

"I'm sorry!" the stocky boy shouted, trying to catch his breath. "It's just… you two are so alike and you don't even realize it!"

"Yeah, and the parallels just keep coming!" Tuffnut exclaimed.

Stoick rubbed his forehead and sighed, shaking his head in disappointment at the three of them.

Hiccup sighed and rubbed his forehead, shaking his head in disappointment at the three of them.

Both unaware the other had done the exact same thing.

**Taking his hands into both of his (which is really unneeded since one is enough to completely engulf Hiccup's), Stoick continues, "I'm proud, to call you my son." He then releases his hand.**

Hiccup smiled, emotions piling up. "Thanks, Dad."

**Hiccup nods, emotions piling up. "Thanks, Dad," he says breathlessly.**

**The boy then crouches down on the dragon, who crouches down on the ground before taking off in a blast. Stoick is left looking after them, wondering how things will go.**

**Hiccup and Toothless take to the skies. Astrid, seeing the two flying up, shouts to the others, "He's up!"**

**A few Vikings warriors are seen still there, looking at the giant monster, when Astrid flies overhead, the twins close behind her.**

**"Get Snotlout out of there!" she orders them.**

**"I'm on it!" exclaims Ruffnut.**

**"I'm on it!" Tuffnut says half a second later.**

**Immediately they start to squabble, with Tuffnut saying he's on it first (even though they're on the same dragon) and Ruffnut telling him to let her drive (even though they're on the same dragon), to which he replies with a 'don't push me'.**

The other teens shot the twins unimpressed looks. "Can't you stop your arguing, at least for a few minutes?" Hiccup asked, exasperated. Was that something he'd have to put up with, after being accepted by the rest of the teens? He dreaded to find out.

"Hey, she didn't want to let me drive, of course I'd defend my rights," Tuffnut protested.

"Me? You're the one hogging all the space, I want to drive!"

"Nevermind…" Hiccup shook his head and glanced at Astrid, who just shrugged, indicating it was indeed something pretty common for the twins and thus crushing all his remaining hope. At least he could look forward to being friends with Astrid… and maybe… something more? Later? Possibly?

**The twins continue to argue as they approach the Red Death's head. Snotlout, seeing them come, gets up and runs up its head, using its stump of a horn as a stepping stone to jump off of. He disappears from view for a second before he's seen hanging between the Zippleback's necks.**

**"Hey, I can't believe that worked!"**

**Astrid follows them, but the Red Death turns its head, as if only now noticing (it's old and senile, give it a break) the bothersome teens. It starts to breathe in, sucking in the Nadder and her rider.**

"ASTRID!" Half the village shouted, some louder than the others, amongst which her parents and the other teens. Astrid herself sat rigidly against Toothless's scales, staring straight ahead.

She might've been Fearless Astrid Hofferson, but that didn't mean she wanted to die. Especially, that didn't mean she wasn't affected by seeing herself so helpless. If she lost her grip, or if someone didn't distract the Red Death soon, she'd be eaten in a heartbeat.

When Hiccup's hand suddenly appeared in hers, she didn't complain. She felt him squeeze her hand slightly, and squeezed back, but just barely. She didn't need comfort, or at least she didn't want anyone to know that she would appreciate it. It wasn't that she _actually needed_ comfort, but it was much better with it. Everything was better with comfort and support.

Meanwhile, in Hiccup's head, all thoughts about the others disappeared. _'I have to save her. Me, or anyone! Just save her!'_ he said to himself, rigid with worry and fear. _'Khor said the war would end in a way no one could've predicted, which is pretty much too vague for guesses… but does this unexpected end result in Astrid's death?'_ He shut his eyes, preventing tears from forming in the first place. _'No, it can't be. She's the reason why I stayed, in the future… and I suppose now too. I can't let her die. What I said earlier is true for her too – if her future is one of death, then we'll change it. Sacrifices may have to be made, but that's a sacrifice I am not willing to make. She can't die. She won't die.'_

**The whistle of a Night Fury cuts through the air as the dragon's silhouette races through the cloudy sky.**

**"Night Fury!" a voice, presumably Spitelout, calls out as everyone crouches underneath their shields.**

**Gobber covers his head with his hand. "Get down!"**

**Astrid's Nadder is now just a few metres away from the monster's gaping maw, and the girl is clinging onto the saddle like a lifeline to avoid being sucked in. A dot in the sky appears as the whistle increases, until the Night Fury comes into view, getting closer.**

**Just as the monster is about to eat Nadder and rider whole, the dragon fires a plasma blast that hits its lower jaw, causing an explosion that pushes it away, but also knocks Astrid off the saddle. The girl starts to fall, screaming.**

Many, who had started to relax upon hearing the Night Fury's signature whistle, tensed up again. While some Vikings could survive falling from a great height, Astrid was just a teen, and a thin one too – no offence meant to her, of course. A fall from that high was almost guaranteed to be fatal.

Hiccup was the only one who allowed himself to relax more. Toothless would catch her. No, _he and Toothless_ would catch her. In the air, there was no difference between the two. They both flew and they were both flightless without the other.

**Toothless flies up, spins around and inverts his vertical speed, racing back down.**

**The Nadder flies away as Astrid continues to fall. However, before she can actually hit the ground, a black shape (of obvious origins) bolts by the screen, taking her with it. The dark shape is revealed to be Toothless and Hiccup, the latter of which turns back to check if the girl was still falling or not. "Did you get her?"**

**Toothless looks down at the girl he's holding by the boots, who smiles up at him. He smiles back in his own way, crooning.**

"Were you answering me or greeting her?" Hiccup wondered as everyone relaxed once again. Beside him, Astrid patted Toothless's neck.

Toothless shamelessly enjoyed the neck rubs he was getting from both teens. "Yes."

_'What are you, American?'_ Khor snorted to himself.

**Toothless tosses her up and catches her by the arm before using his back paws to set her straight as he gently drops her on the shore. She breaks into a short run to slow herself down without faceplanting into the sand, watching as boy and dragon fly off to fight the giant Queen.**

**"Go," she tells him breathlessly, even though he cannot hear her.**

Astrid smiled. Perhaps Hiccup and Toothless on their own wouldn't be enough to defeat the Red Death, but if she had any money to bet, she'd bet they could and would kill that tyrant.

"Aww, she has so much fate in her mate, that's adorable!" Zippy and Zappy, an electric yellow Hideous Zippleback, commented cheerfully.

Astrid sent him a glare and rolled her eyes, having long since given up on correcting people. They turned a deaf ear every time she tried anyway, so why even bother?

Astrid's parents, and of course Stoick and Gobber, all exchanged smiling glances. Their babies were growing up! Gobber even had to wipe a tear from his eye. _'My little bundle-of-clumsiness apprentice finally got himself a girlfriend!'_ he thought, touched.

Unbeknownst to him, he wasn't the only one. _'My little murder-happy Shieldmaiden got herself a boyfriend!'_ Astrid's father thought, smiling tearfully.

Aside from those five, everyone else didn't really react to the onscreen Astrid's single-word sentence. It wasn't of any particular importance to them.

**Flying back up, Hiccup looks down at the Red Death, coming to the unbelievable realization that… "That thing has wings…"**

"Such an amazing eye for details," Snotlout drawled sarcastically. "Now we know that it's a dragon and not some overgrown ugly fire-breathing lizard."

"Why, thank you," Hiccup smiled thinly. "I'm grateful you appreciate my incredible skills."

**"Okay, let's see if it can use them!" the two of them climb higher into the sky before Toothless turns around and races back down, pressing his wings together to reduce the air's resistance and increase their speed.**

**The Night Fury's whistle starts, growing louder as the two pierce through the clouds and see the Red Death, closing in fast until they finally blast it, pulling up immediately afterwards.**

"Bullseye!" cheered Toothless, grinning like crazy.

"Don't get too excited," Meatlug replied, worried out of her mind. "One blast won't be enough to kill the Blood Tyrant…"

The Night Fury pouted and huffed. "Oh come on, let me have my fun!"

"You can have your fun when we're out of danger," retorted Hookfang.

"You're just a scaredy-cat," Stormfly teased him, grinning smugly or at least trying to considering her draconic features, leaving the Nightmare to sulk.

**The explosions knocks down the Queen, that roars in pain as it is brought down, kicking up a huge cloud of dirt.**

"Yeah! I rule!"

**Several Viking creep closer to see if it's dead, with Gobber, Astrid and Stoick being first and foremost, swiping at the dirt cloud to clear their vision.**

**In front of them, the Red Death's enormous wing opens with an ominous music playing in the background.**

"Okay, maybe I don't rule," Toothless admitted, slightly cowed by the sight paired with the music. "Though that might just be the music."

"It's okay, Toothless, we'll find a way," Hiccup reassured him. He already had a couple of plans that his future self should try out. The first was to try and injure it using the sea stacks – while the Night Fury would be able to easily avoid them, the Red Death wouldn't. If that failed, then they could fly high up into the sky and hide within the clouds, wearing it down and poking holes in its wings before leading it down and using what he'd learned from the Terrible Terror to set it on fire from within and letting it smash onto the ground. The second plan was a bit more complex than he'd like, considering just how dangerous it was to stay near that thing for even just one second, but there weren't many other options.

Viking support wouldn't help since weapons and artillery wouldn't do anything. Even Toothless's blast hadn't killed it, though hopefully it had injured it.

**The scene changes to Hiccup and Toothless flying over the seastacks. "You think that did it?" asks the boy, turning back to check.**

**Behind them, the Red Death rises into view, beating its gigantic wings and roaring in defiance and anger at them.**

A few Vikings and dragons fainted at seeing the giant bulk of the Queen flying after the two. Stoick was clenching his fist so tightly, he was almost compressing air particles.

**Turning back to Toothless, who's looking at him expectantly, Hiccup confirms, "Well, it can fly." Snorting, the Night Fury speeds up, heading into the sea stacks surrounded by fog.**

**They avoid the Red Death's jaws and start to slalom through the sea stacks with the monster following. The Queen smashes right through a huge arc of rock even bigger itself.**

Hiccup winced. So no on Plan A, and onto Plan B, the very dangerous one. His father would be unbearably overprotective for months after this. Perhaps even years.

Stoick gritted his teeth in frustration. Just how tough was that dragon?! True, Fishlegs had -probably correctly- classified it as a Boulder Class, literally the dragons with the toughest skin, but that monster shouldn't have been able to break through dozens of thousands of tons of solid rock like it was nothing!

Astrid was feeling frustrated as well, though for a similar but different reason. While she knew that, as an inexperienced rider, she would only get in the way if she tried to hop onto the Nadder again and help, it still didn't sit right with her to just be useless as Hiccup risked his life to save them. But that frustration soon turned into determination. Once Hiccup ended the war, she'd train with her dragon as hard as she trained with her axe, so that she'd never leave him to fight alone.

**The Vikings watch as Hiccup and Toothless races past, with the remaining teens amongst them. Ruff, Tuff, Snotlout and Fishlegs start to cheer him on, followed by the other Vikings. All but Stoick, Gobber and Astrid, who knows it's far from safe.**

"Oh, cheer up you three sad yaks!" Snotlout exclaimed, rolling his eyes. "What's wrong with being happy?!"

**Then the Red Death rushes by, smashing all the sea stacks to dust, and the crowd is silenced.**

"Is that enough of a reason for you?" Astrid retorted with a raised eyebrow.

Snotlout opened his mouth to reply, but no words came out. Then he frowned and grumbled, "Shut up, Astrid."

**As they're being chased, Hiccup looks up, ignoring the Red Death smashing another sea stack, and sees the dark clouds overhead. "Okay, Toothless, time to disappear!"**

"What?! Now you can make yourself invisible?!" complained Tuffnut. "Why does he always get the cool stuff?! I only have _you_ as a sister!" he added, kicking Ruffnut, who then punched him back, offended.

**"Come on, bud!" The two of them fly up with a change of the tailfin, leaving the Vikings to gasp in surprise. The Red Death tries to bite them, but misses horribly. Then it decides to go for another method and opens its mouth, filling it with gas.**

**"Here it comes!" Hiccup calls out before the Queen ignites the gas, sending a huge pillar of fire towards them. The two evade it before the Queen flies through it, spreading the smoke.**

**The three of them, two dragons and one monster, fly through the clouds, disappearing from the Vikings' view.**

Toothless smirked smugly when even the narrator called Hiccup a dragon. Beside him, Stormfly rolled her eyes.

**The Red Death makes another attempt at eating the two, but only bites air. Beating its wings to still itself, it looks around, trying to pinpoint their location in the clouds.**

**The very empty clouds are all it sees.**

**Down below, the Vikings watch as its roars and growls can be heard from within the layer of fog, all of them apprehensive, especially Stoick and Astrid, at the front.**

**Back within the clouds, the Red Death looks around, when a black shape races across the screen with a whistle. Music builds up before a plasma blast pierces the fog, hitting the monster in the right wing, where it attaches to the body.**

**The Queen roars in pain as it slowly turns around, but the Night Fury never shows itself, and never misses.**

Hiccup and Toothless both smirked, one because he said those very same things when he was narrating the beginning, and the second because he was damn proud of his stealth skills… though his actions back at the village might've not been exactly stealthy, especially throwing that bucket so carelessly.

"Will that be enough to kill that thing?" Snotlout spoke up, doubtful. "I mean, it's huge! Plus Toothless was terrified of it." She shrank away from Astrid's glare. "Just saying, of course."

"That thing can't see Toothless, plus those blasts are totally awesomely destructive," Ruffnut waved off his concerns, as if there was no doubt it'd work. "As long as they stay in the clouds, the only thing that can harm them is a lucky shot."

"Or would it be an _unlucky_ shot?" Tuffnut added, rubbing his chin in thought. "You know, because for Hiccup, it would be pretty unlucky. So should we consider Hiccup's perception of lucky, or the Red Death's perception of it?"

"Oh, shut up, you two!" Snotlout exclaimed, throwing his arms in the air in exasperation. "Muttonheads," he muttered, almost as an afterthoughts.

"Though Ruffnut is right, Toothless does have the advantage there," Fishlegs shyly pointed out, indicating the clouds. "There's no way the Red Death can aim if it can't see them."

**Toothless rushes by and the Queen tries to turn around to follow him, but he's gone again. Above it, Hiccup and Toothless watch it for a split second before diving again, blasting the same spot and disappearing again.**

**They dive again and blast the other wing's base, racing by before the Red Death can catch them.**

**Several shots are shown, with each of them the Night Fury and his Rider injure the Red Death's wings further and further without being caught.**

"Five, six…" Fishlegs muttered, trying to keep count of how many shots could a Night Fury fire before he ran out.

Hiccup glanced at him, and rolled his eyes, knowing fully well the answer. "Toothless's shot limit is six, Fishlegs," he explained, petting the dragon's head. "But he recharges them very quickly. By now, the shots he fired to save Astrid and to get it into the air probably don't even count any more."

_'Lucky bastard,'_ some of the dragons thought. Even though there were dragons with more than six shots, like the Monstrous Nightmares, recharging it quickly was actually very useful. And besides, with how powerful a Night Fury's plasma blasts were, even six would usually kill all but the toughest dragons.

**Down below, the Vikings watch in awe as the blasts illuminate the huge silhouette of the Red Death within the clouds.**

**Back to said monster, it roars in fury and gathers the gas in its mouth to fire again, breathing flames and death in every direction as it twists its body and neck.**

"You were saying?" Snotlout glared at Ruffnut and Fishlegs for jinxing it. "It couldn't hit them? It couldn't aim? Check again, muttonheads!"

"Hey, how was I supposed to know it could do that?!" Ruffnut protested, feeling attacked… which she was.

**Hiccup, flying through the clouds with his dragon, looks back to see the oncoming wall of flaming demise and warns his friend, "Watch out!"**

**The two manage to escape the fire, but Toothless's leather tailfin is damaged and the burning embers are threatening to destroy it entirely.**

"Oh no, Hiccup!"

Astrid slammed a fist on her knee, feeling utterly useless. "Damn it, that's not fair!"

"How did it even catch fire, it would need a Nightmare's liquid fire to stick to things, or at least a Gronckle's lava! Gaseous fire like that can't just stick to things and it needs to hit directly to burn!" Fishlegs ranted, feeling cheated by the universe and by the Gods… although he wouldn't risk Odin's wrath and mention that second one. "Fire takes time to burn, and if it was hot enough to burn instantly, then Hiccup would-"

He stopped when Snotlout elbowed him in the side, pointing at the very worried and very easily angered Stoick and Astrid, both of which were watching the screen attentively, as if they could catch Hiccup if he fell. "Not the time to mention it could've gone worse, Fishface."

"Right… sorry…"

Even the twins were silent. Destruction for the win, but as Tuffnut had stated while watching the training session with the Nadder, they preferred their near-death experiences without the death part actually happening. Sure, they were dumb so they often almost got themselves killed, but they didn't do it on purpose. And even they knew that without a tailfin, both their friends would plummet to their deaths… not to mention fail to kill the Red Death, which would then kill everyone else.

**"Okay, time's up," Hiccup realizes with a note of fear in his voice. The tailfin is no more on fire, but the embers are feeding on the wind and keep burning the leather. "Let's see if this works."**

**The music picks up immediately as they roll through the air and come back down towards the Queen, avoiding its flailing wings. "Come on, is this the best you can do?!" Toothless roars as well, determinedly flying downwards with its tail still burning and smoking.**

Hiccup frowned, turning to Toothless, while all the dragons burst out laughing. "Wait, isn't that the same thing you said to Ruffnut a while back?"

Toothless grinned and nodded, biting back his own laughter. "Exactly that one. Good ears."

"What does it mean again?" Fishlegs asked, desperately trying to find some dragon knowledge Hiccup didn't already figure out on his own. No offence to Hiccup, of course, but the beefy blonde _really_ wanted to study the dragons until he could say he knew more than Hiccup Haddock.

Toothless didn't lose his grin. "It's hard to explain, but basically… it means I just called the Blood Tyrant a crossbreed between an eel and a bat, and I questioned its level of intelligence."

A few Vikings chuckled at the offensive meaning of the word -or well, growl- but Fishlegs was ecstatic. Eels and bats were obviously disliked by dragons, if they were used in their worst insult. And they took pride in their intelligence, even though it couldn't even compare to a Viking's…

A random Viking in the crowd farted loudly.

…okay, maybe couldn't compare to the intelligence of _some_ Vikings.

**The Red Death opens all its eyes, as if deeply offended, and tries to eat the two, who dodge it again and fly downwards, leading the monster down with them.**

**Human and dragon burst from the clouds, closely followed by the titanic Queen, that roars in anger at them. Poor little thing probably wanted to go back to lazying off for centuries.**

A lot of people and dragons snorted at the jab.

**As it closes the distance, Toothless is shown, utterly terrified and with its pupils narrowed into slits. "Stay with me bud, we're good," Hiccup tries to reassure him, twisting his foot to keep the tail in position. "Just a little bit longer."**

**Through the clouds, the Red Death narrows its eyes as a brief opening in the fog allows it to see the two clearly. It opens its mouth to fire, filling it with gas.**

**"Hold, Toothless," Hiccup orders his dragon, hearing the hiss of the gas. He closes his eyes and relies on his hearing alone, counting a few seconds. Then he opens them and shouts, "Now!"**

**Toothless turns around, unsteadily trying to right himself in the air but unable to do so, to face the Red Death. The monster tries to ignite the gas and fire, but the Night Fury shoots a plasma blast into its mouth, rebounding the shot right back into its throat and creating a true fireball in its mouth.**

"Yeah!" the teens screamed in triumph, seeing the monster defeated by its own fire. True, it still hadn't been defeated, but it soon would.

"You rule indeed," Stormfly praised the Night Fury, who nodded smugly, before she bluntly destroyed his ego. "I was talking to Hiccup."

"I'm the one who fired!"

"He's the one who told you when, and wasn't on the verge of fainting," Astrid remarked, nudging the dragon teasingly.

"I wasn't about to faint!"

**The ground comes into view, and the Red Death is surprised. It tries to spread its wings, but the damage done by Toothless comes into play and rips the membranes, not slowing it down in the slightest.**

**Righting themselves up, Hiccup and Toothless allow the air's resistance to pull them upwards, beside the monster's gaping jaws and up behind its neck.**

**The Vikings watch in awe as the Queen crashes against the ground, exploding into a gigantic fireball that knocks them all back that creates a mushroom flaming cloud above the fog.**

"Get bent, fucker!" Magmascale shouted gleefully before Meatlug tail-bludgeoned his family jewels, reducing him to a whimpering mess.

"There are little ones here!" she scolded, furious. Almost all the males in the room whimpered and covered their crotches. A normal hit hurt like hell, but a tail-bludgeon from a Gronckle was the Gods forsaking mankind.

"You did it, Hiccup, you did it!" Astrid exclaimed joyfully, hugging the boy tightly. He chuckled nervously and just as nervously returned the hug before both of them were swept up in a giant bear hug by Stoick himself. Toothless shrugged off the other teens and stood up on two legs before joining the hug too, although a bit clumsily considering he'd never done that before.

"Yeah!" Snotlout shouted, waving both arms wildly. "We won! We won the war! Snotlout, Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!"

"What did you even do?" Tuffnut asked, frowning at the boy's victory call.

"The war is over!" "We won!" "The Blood Tyrant is dead!" "Wait, who is dead?" That one was Bucket. "They've done it!" "I can finally sleep at night!" That was Gobber.

**Hiccup and Toothless fly up the monster's back, dodging the bone spikes as the try to outrun the fire. The boy looks back, keeping an eye on both the fireball and the tailfin.**

**He keeps twisting the pedal, trying to keep the tailfin steady, but the damage is too much and the already skeletal tailfin finally breaks off. Just as it looks like they're still going to make it without the tailfin and will just crash-land a little, the monster's huge tail-bludgeon comes into view, swinging right into their path.**

**"No…" Unable to turn efficiently, boy and dragon smash into the tail at full speed. "No!"**

**Hiccup is thrown off the saddle, knocked out by the impact. Toothless twists in the air, roaring in distress as the boy falls down towards the giant explosion.**

**Righting himself in the air, the dragon beats his wings to try and reach his rider before the fire, but before he can, the flames swallow them both, cutting them off from view.**

"NO!"

All the joy from seeing the Red Death's explosive demise immediately left, replaced with a deep and cold sense of dread. Khor winced, having expected such a negative reaction.

"Hiccup!" Stoick thundered, dropping both the boy and Astrid as he took a few steps toward the screen, before he turned around and glared at Khor, beyond furious. "So this is the future, you say?!"

Khor, who looked like a deer caught in a dragon's sight, immediately put up his hands in surrender. "Whoa, why are you looking at me like that? I didn't choose how it'd go, I'm just the narrator!"

"Wait, so you're the one who came up with all those comments and little quips?!" roared the Nightmare whom Stoick had effortlessly beaten at the beginning of the movie.

"It doesn't matter!" Stoick roared even louder, scaring the Nightmare into submission, although he did silently take note of it for later. The Chief then turned to glare at Khor. "If this is the future, then I swear, I will change it."

"Sure, do as you wish," Khor nodded submissively. Not that he was particularly intimidated by Stoick -he was just an extension of someone's will, so he couldn't be worried about his safety-, but he did acknowledge the fact that they would all be worried. "In fact, why don't you make note of it, and start to think of ways you can change this?"

The Chief narrowed his eyes at him. "Are you trying to trick me? Everyone knows the Gods do not want the future they've set for us to change. And you insist on being sent by the Gods."

Khor just shrugged. "The Gods also favour the strong, whatever kind of strength that may be. If you're strong enough to change your future, it's up to you whether to do it, or not." He shooed the giant man away and back to his seat. "Besides, you'll need to see what else happens if you want to change it so badly. Then you ca-Hey!"

Their host frowned at Astrid, who had just tried to punch him in the face. She glared at him when her hand just stopped short of making contact, and sat back down with a frustrated huff. She hadn't even gotten revenge for all that mockery and making fun of her facial expressions.

Strangely enough, Hiccup wasn't feeling very worried. For one, he still had Toothless. And two, well as his Dad had just said, he just needed to change a few things. Although, part of him wondered if that was the right thing to do. His friends had bonded with dragons because they needed to, not because they'd seen him around one for so long that they got used to the idea. And also… okay, a big part of his reluctance in changing that future was the fact that he hadn't gotten to go on a romantic flight with Astrid or anything.

But still, who knew what could change if this future didn't go like it was meant to? He didn't mind having Astrid being close to him, but… which way would end with the best relationship? (and not just romantically, also platonically) What about his friendship with the other teens?

And, a perhaps very selfish reason, would he still receive any respect if their village changed their ways because of this future-viewing session? Or would everyone get a dragon and he would be forgotten about, left to go back to being useless? Would the other teens even be his friends any more? Or would they just get dragon and go back to being cool?

He loved Toothless like a brother, but he _was_ without his tailfin and crippled. A downed dragon was a dead dragon. Would he be considered worthless too? Or even worse, would he be forced to take another dragon, either to give the _Night Fury_ to someone who deserved him, or to get a healthy dragon, with him being the heir and all?

He didn't want to sound selfish, but would he even be given credit for what he did? Or would it just be written off as the Vikings _realizing_ that the war was a misunderstanding and then smartly joining forces with dragons to defeat the Red Death?

Would it even work? Or would they just get so irritated with the dragons that they would then just attack them out of anger?

Plus there was Mildew to think about, him and his annoying ability to rile up the village and cause riots for the smallest things. He would surely try to sabotage the peace and probably succeed, considering how he had successfully riled up people about much dumber things prior. Peace without the end of the war having already happened was an impossible dream, and even then it would be hard.

So, would it be worth to change the future, if the new future risked ending up even bleaker than this? Besides, apart from him and Toothless falling into flames (Toothless was fireproof and could still protect him), the rest of that future looked incredibly non-violent and very bright.

Not to mention the fact that if he wasn't the one to kill the Red Death… would the other teens still listen to him as their leader? Perhaps for a while, but then? He wasn't one to brag, he'd never been, but he couldn't see anyone else leading the riders. Snotlout was an idiot, Fishlegs had no backbone, the twins… were the twins, and even Astrid had an attitude problem and had zero respect for most people. She'd said it herself, she didn't care what people did, how could she be a good permanent leader?

And that was without thinking about who would have to handle the dragons. Him? Yeah, for a while, until everyone remembered he was the useless runt who had destroyed the village even without the dragons' direct help. And for the same reasons he listed before, he couldn't entrust it on anyone else.

If he survived that fall, then this was the future he _needed_ to make true. The alternative held too many risks of going wrong. Ironic. Things risked going wrong from good intentions, while in that future they seemed to go well due to bad choices and desperate actions. He may have loved sarcasm, but the Gods truly loved irony.

**The flames turn white, giving way for a cloud of ashes floating in the breeze.**

**Stoick comes into view, coughing as he looks around. "Hiccup!" he calls out, and then again, "Hiccup! Son!"**

**He stops, seeing Toothless laying on the scorched sand not too far away, the ashes thinning enough to allow him to see. "Hiccup…"**

Stoick turned to briefly glare at Khor. _'If he's dead, you know what's coming.'_

Khor just checked his nails. He knew how it ended anyway.

**He unsteadily runs towards the dragon, who's laying on a bed of glassified sand. He stops as he sees Hiccup's empty and scorched saddle, as well as the ruined tail mechanism once the dragon rolls on one side.**

Hiccup and Toothless both relaxed. If Toothless was fine, then Hiccup was fine. In fact, if they had to make an educate guess, they'd guess Toothless had protected Hiccup from the flames by wrapping his wings around the two of them and using his body to shield him from the brunt of the explosion.

**Stoick gasps, falling on his knees, as realization hits him. "Oh, son…" he laments, bowing his head in shame. "I did this…"**

"Aren't those the exact same words Hiccup said when he was about to free Toothless?" Tuffnut wondered, tilting his head to the side and letting his dreadlocks brush against the floor – not that he washed his hair anyway.

"Yeah, you're right," his sister nodded in agreement, tilting her head the opposite way, so that their helmets were touching. "It's some nice parallels here."

Snotlout wordlessly grabbed their helmets and slammed them together before wiping a tear from his eyes. Who could blame him? He disliked Hiccup (most of it was still due to upbringing, weight or just envy) but he'd never wanted him dead or even hurt.

Astrid bit her lip. She didn't even try to look away from the screen, knowing she'd never be able to. But past the pain, she was also suspicious as to why Toothless didn't seem to be very sad… or at all. In fact, the dragon seemed slightly bored. What was with that?

**The rest of the Vikings slowly approach, though they stop at a respectable distance. The twins, Fishlegs, Snotlout and Spitelout are at the front. After a few seconds, Astrid and Gobber elbow their way through the crowd to see what's going on.**

**Upon seeing the bowed shape of the Chief, Astrid stops, eyes widening in loss and grief.**

Hiccup forced himself to look. While he knew that Toothless had saved him -or the dragon wouldn't just lay there, injured or not, he'd be looking for him-, he was aware he and Toothless were the only ones who had figured it out.

He forced himself to look because he needed to see what their reactions would be. Not because he wanted to see if they'd grieve for him or not, he knew they would, but because he knew that he was going to put himself in danger in the future, and he needed to see how badly his death would hurt people. So that even at his most reckless, he could see that self-sacrifice would hurt his people so much.

To most, it wouldn't have made sense, but to him, it did. He was aware of how reckless we was with his inventions and now with Toothless too. If he didn't find a way to contain his recklessness, he'd get himself killed. Reminding himself that dying or being hurt would hurt those he cared for would be a good way to keep himself in check.

That is, if Astrid wasn't going to, which she most probably would.

**The dragons peek out from behind the crowd, and no one seems to even notice them, too caught up in their mourning.**

**Toothless croons as he opens his eyes and raises his head, looking at the Chief.**

**The two stare at each other for a second, before the sniffling Chief speaks through his tears, "I'm so… I'm so sorry…"**

**Toothless's eyes widen before he closes them… and opens his wings.**

**Showing that he's holding Hiccup to his chest, safe from the flames.**

A moment of silence reigned in the room as everyone realized that Hiccup was, in fact, safe and sound, and that Toothless had saved him.

Then, chaos erupted. It was impossible to tell who shouted the first cheer, nor who shouted the successive ones, because everyone was cheering. On the Viking's side, because Hiccup was alive. On the dragons' side, because Toothless didn't seem hurt and hadn't lost his beloved rider. And for that little strange group in the middle, because of both.

"He's okaaaa- Wait, why isn't Hiccup surprised?" Tuffnut suddenly asked, stopping mid-cheer, his expression turning from exultant to serious in a split second. "Did you already know about this… and you didn't tell us?!"

Suddenly all the teens (and his father) turned to look at him with suspicion. He chuckled sheepishly. "Kinda?" he offered. It didn't work. "I couldn't know for sure, but I know Toothless would never let me fall. And if he hadn't been able to save me, you would've found him frantically looking for me."

"I'm guessing you did the same," Stormfly commented coldly, glaring down at Toothless, who looked as smug as ever.

"Of course."

**"Hiccup!" Stoick rushes to get his son. He takes him from the Night Fury and removes his helmet to check his heartbeat after moving his hair back to check for head injuries. After a few seconds, he breaks out in relieved sobs. "He's alive. You brought him back alive!"**

**Toothless looks at him as if to say 'duh, of course', as the crowd explodes in cheers.**

**Astrid gasps in relief, covering her mouth.**

"Someone's really happy, huh, lass?" Gobber teased, successfully embarrassing the girl. Next was… "Well, at least Hiccup will like to know his girlfriend cares about him."

"Gobber!" Hiccup exclaimed, glaring at him out of embarrassment. "We're not… Why would even…"

Gobber laughed as he watched one of them sulk and the other sputter denials. Ah, young love.

**The other teens are likewise relieved. Snotlout wipes a tear away and sighs in relief, Fishlegs cheers, the twins smile and behind them, the Nightmare and the Zippleback growl.**

**The other Vikings clap and cheer, laughing in relief, before the dragons lower their heads to cheer alongside them, causing the nearby Vikings to stop laughing and to look at them apprehensively.**

The teens snickered at the Vikings' reactions. Of course they had forgotten about the large fire-breathing flying reptiles just behind them, too caught up in the moment.

**Moved, Stoick places a grateful hand on Toothless's head. "Thank you," he says, "for saving my son."**

**Toothless croons and lays down, exhausted, accepting the man's gratitude.**

**Gobber walks up to them, staring at Hiccup, and shrugs. "Well, you know… Most of him."**

**Stoick glances at him.**

"What do you mean, 'most of him'?" asked Snotlout, slightly afraid to know the answer.

Gobber winced and held up his hook. "Well, you know, not every injury is live or die. Some can leave more… permanent… effects."

Everyone in the hall winced. Losing a limb was horrible, especially at such young age.

Despite being happy to be alive, Hiccup winced. His arms had looked fine, thank Thor, but that meant his legs were the ones damaged. Would be still be able to walk? Perhaps he could come up with something to attach to the saddle and use Toothless to walk like he used him to fly. Turning the tailfin from foot-activated to hand-activated wouldn't be too hard…

**The scene changes to Hiccup in bed, several small scratches on his face.**

**Toothless is also seen in the room, trying to wake him up by blowing on his face. The dragon leans back and lets out a low growl, which successfully awakens the boy from his slumber.**

**Hiccup starts to open his eyes, and Toothless croons, happy to see him awake. The dragon leans forward, nudging his face with his nose. "Hey Toothless. I'm happy to see you too, bud. Owww!" Hiccup weakly tells him before Toothless steps on his stomach, making him curl up in pain. He then realizes where he is as he looks around, holding his stomach. "Whaa… aahhh… I'm in my house? Uhh… you're in my house? Does my dad know you're here?"**

**Meanwhile, Toothless is jumping around out of happiness, knocking things over as he goes.**

Stoick sighed. He would probably need to get used to that. Most probably Hiccup would force him to let Toothless sleep inside anyway.

Hiccup smiled, happy to see his dragon so at home inside… well, his home. It gave him hope that maybe adapting to the peace wouldn't be so impossible. Considering that he, Gobber, his dad and the other teens, as well as Toothless and the Nadder from the arena, were the only ones currently sitting with both species mixed, he needed all the hope he could get.

**"Toothless…" The dragon eyes a wooden beam. "No, no… Toothless-" He jumps and lands on the beam before looking down at Hiccup, perched on the beam. "Toothless! Ah, come on…"**

"And here is the great hero of the war, not even able to keep his dragon under control at home," Snotlout rolled his eyes before Hookfang set his behind on fire… again. "Aaagh! Why do you keep doing that?! I don't even know you!"

"I'm the one you ride in battle in the future," Hookfang proudly exclaimed, puffing his chest out.

"Well, stop setting me on fire!" the Jorgenson heir exclaimed, rubbing his smoking butt. How no one had realized Khor must've willingly allowed the fire to touch him, he would never find out. "I didn't even do anything to you!"

"I know. But it's funny."

**Hiccup goes to get out of bed, but he stops after feeling something is wrong.**

**He removes the blanket with a sigh, preparing himself for whatever injury he might've sustained. Toothless jumps down from the wooden beam to support him if needed. Hiccup takes a few seconds to take in the discovery before he starts to get out of bed.**

Hiccup tensed up slightly, both eager and slightly afraid to see the gravity of the injury.

**His right boot touches the floor… followed by a metal prosthetic instead of his left foot.**

Despite everything, Hiccup sighed in relief, as did many others. While having a prosthetic was still horrible and it could seriously destroy someone's life (despite many Berkians having one or more), the simple fact they had given him a prosthetic meant that his left leg was still usable and that he could still walk, albeit he'd need to learn how to now. It was far from the best option, but it was also far from the worst that could've happened.

Gobber patted Stoick's shoulder, knowing just how badly he must've been taking it. His son had lost his leg because of him, and now every time he looked at him, he would be reminded of just how deeply he had messed up.

But Stoick was happy, because that very same reminder would also show him how proud he was of his son, how great Hiccup really was, and would keep him in line in the future. Because even if he accidentally fell back into his old mistakes, one look at his son would show him what those mistakes had led to, and snap him out of it.

It was a painful mark of shame for him, Stoick the Vast, but it was one that would also help.

If only his son hadn't had to lose a leg and save the world for him to realize that.

The other teens were all relieved. They had grown up pretty much expecting to lose limbs in the future, considering that six out of ten people in Berk had some sort of prosthetic or crippling injury, sometimes both. But considering the immensity of what Hiccup had just done, a lost leg wasn't a huge price.

Plus the fact that the war was over also meant that no harm would befall on any of them anytime soon, right?

**Toothless leans down to sniff the metal prosthetic before looking up at the boy, who lets out a breath heavy with worry and loss. A lost limb can never be replaced, and would never come back.**

All the amputees of Berk rubbed their stumps, remembering how they lost them. They made do and complained little, but it still was a lifechanger… often for the worse. And now a fifteen-year-old boy would have to go through it.

**Leaning on the bedpost, he stands up, putting all his weight on his right leg. Then he tries to make a step, and groans in pain as he shifts on his left. He stops to regain his breath and stands up straight, trying to look confident in his chances of making it to the door, but at his next step his prosthetic fails him and he almost falls with a cry of pain, if not for Toothless holding him up with his head.**

Stoick winced. That was painful to watch. That was his son's reality now, and it was all his fault.

**"Okay… Thanks, bud," he says as he hops to the door, leaning on Toothless's head to avoid putting too much weight on his prosthetic.**

**Now without a left tailfin and a left foot, the duo heads for the door.**

"Any time, Hiccup," Toothless replied with a smile, lifting up his tail. "You helped me fly, it's only fair I helped you walk."

"Yes, but I was the one to hurt you in the first place."

"I hurt you too. I hurt you by not being able to save you like you instead saved me from the Queen."

"I still say the parallels are getting a little too much to be mere coincidence," Tuffnut interjected, changing the topic altogether. "It seems as if the Gods wanted to emphasize particular moments of the future to let us reflect on what has been and what has yet to be."

"Could it be that they want us to think of how we acted in the past, and give it a new meaning in the future?" Ruffnut continued. "So… what did _we_ do in the past?"

"Mindlessly destroy people's stuff?" Tuffnut offered.

"How can we give it a new meaning?" Ruffnut wondered before both hers and her brother's eyes lit up. _"We purposefully and specifically destroy people's stuff!"_ they exclaimed at the same time, as if they'd just had a genius idea.

"Muttonheads," Snotlout grunted, rolling his eyes.

**Hiccup grabs the door and pulls it open with a grunt…**

**Only to see a Monstrous Nightmare roaring in his direction.**

**He immediately shuts it again.**

"Wait, what's going on?" Hookfang exclaimed, recognizing himself. "That was me! And raids don't happen during the day, anyway! Why would I be there?"

Hiccup suddenly smiled. "I think I may have an idea…"

"I'm sure we're having the same idea," Astrid added with her own smile.

Stoick didn't say anything, but he suspected things weren't what they looked to be.

**"Toothless?" he calls out as he re-opens the door. "Stay here."**

"Why leave the _unholy offspring of lightning and death itself_ behind and let the scrawny Viking hatchling go ahead?" Skyblaze asked, shaking his head in disapproval.

"Maybe because they're in a Viking village and if there's a raid and Toothless is seen, they might attack him?" Stormfly retorted sarcastically, rolling her eyes at his stupidity. Seriously, it was really simple once one thought about it a little.

**"Come on guys, are you ready!" Snotlout is riding the Nightmare, shouting encouragements at a group of Vikings riding on their own dragons. "Here we go!"**

"Hell yeah, I finally get to catch up with Hiccup in terms of riding skills!" Snotlout cheered.

"Actually it's just been a few days, you haven't improved all that much," Khor pointed out, unimpressed. While he did like Snotlout's character in RTTE, before that he had his head kind of too high up his own ass to be likeable. It was also why he was teased so much before RTTE.

Snotlout sulked.

**Hiccup looks around at the village full of dragons, that is being rebuilt altogether to house the new inhabitants. "What…" New houses are being built and dragons fly and walk everywhere, mostly Nadders, but a few Zipplebacks, Gronckles and Nightmares can still be seen.**

**"I knew it… I'm dead."**

Everyone burst out laughing.

"You wake up after killing the Dragon Queen and losing your leg, and that's what makes you realize you were dead?" Astrid teased him with a grin, nudging him with her elbow.

"Oh, give me a break, it's not like Berk has been eternally famous for hating dragons even more than they hated us," he retorted, though he was laughing. "Besides, who knows, this might all just be a dream that my thirteen-year-old self is having about some grand future or something."

"Sure, and I'm a Gronckle," snorted Toothless, unfazed by the glares of said species directed his way.

**Stoick's laughter bubbles up as he walks to his son and pats his shoulder. "No, but you gave it your best shot." He leads him down the stairs, and suddenly Hiccup doesn't seem to care about his prosthetic any more. "So… what do you think?"**

**Before he can respond, a few villagers spot them. "Hey look, it's Hiccup!" they call out before running up to greet him with smiles, glad he's okay.**

**The poor boy looks understandably overwhelmed. He leans back into his father's arm and looks around like he's being surrounded.**

The villagers who rushed up to him winced at the reminder that he had no reason to think they'd be glad to see him. Of course, even before all this future debacle, they'd be glad to hear he was alright (except Mildew, of course, but he wasn't glad about anything), but they would greet him like that or at all, really.

**Stoick releases him and smiles down at him. "Turns out all we needed was a little more of… this."**

Hiccup smiled, and for once the twins didn't point out the parallels from the beginning.

**Hiccup stares back at him, incredulous. "You just gestured to all of me."**

**Stoick just nods with a smile.**

**"Well… most of you." Of course Gobber has to barge in and ruin the moment. The fat blacksmith limps into view, pointing at Hiccup's prosthetic. "That bit's my handiwork, with a little 'Hiccup' flair thrown in it… you think that'll do?"**

"I think it'll do," Hiccup nodded, smiling, although he was actually already planning on improving that thing anyway. True, it was _much_ better than the simple wooden stumps the other amputees had, but still that thing could be improved a little here and there.

His future self was more honest.

**"I might make a few tweaks," he admits, glancing at the prosthetic. A few chuckles ring out from the crowd around them.**

**Then Astrid comes up behind him and socks him in the upper right arm, taking him by surprise. He turns around, annoying, holding his arm.**

**"That's for scaring me," she tells him as a motivation for the punch.**

**"Wh-What? Was- Is it always gonna be this way?" he asks, irritated by the violent way of getting punished for something he didn't really have a choice in. "'Cause I-"**

**Ignoring his rant, she reaches out, grabs him by the shirt, and kisses him straight on the lips.**

Whistles and cheers immediately burst from the crowd, almost as loud as when the Red Death had died. The end of the war was great and all, but young love beat everything in their opinion.

Toothless was so smug he didn't even need to speak to get on the two teens' nerves, both of whom pushed him away, which only made him laugh.

Speaking of the teens, they couldn't really move away from each other thanks to Toothless's and Stoick's far superior weights, but they did their best to look away from each other, although Hiccup was really jealous of his counterpart. There was no way the Astrid beside him was gonna kiss him now.

**The crowd awws at the sight.**

**As the two separate, Hiccup (still disoriented by the sudden kiss) continues his previous sentence, "…I could get used to it."**

**Astrid smiles shyly at him.**

**Then Gobber hands Hiccup a new tail and saddle with a smile. "Welcome home," he tells him.**

Hiccup smiled. Gobber may be silly most of the time, but he did have his moments. That wasn't just a way to tell him he was glad he recovered, but a way to tell him that Berk was his home now. That Hiccup was 'one of them'.

He wiped away a tear he hadn't felt forming. _'Home feels great,'_ he thought, looking around. His Dad, Gobber, Toothless, Astrid, the other teens… they were home. He already was home.

**Hiccup smiles back, and the sound of a door opening is heard before the cry of "Night Fury!" rings out.**

**"Oh, get down!"**

**Toothless jumps on the Vikings, knocking down a few of them in his excitement, including Spitelout, who gets stepped on with no care.**

Snotlout snickered at seeing his dad knocked down by Toothless and patted the dragon's neck.

Spitelout rolled his eyes, but didn't complain. The Night Fury could be excused for a few things. Besides, he was tough – a little fall wouldn't hurt him.

**Landing in front of the two teens, Toothless growls playfully.**

**The two exchange a sheepish smile and Astrid laughs.**

"Let's just hope that doesn't become too common, mmh?" Stoick commented, glancing at his son, who laughed and nodded. "Good."

"I didn't say anything. I'll tell Toothless not to do it, but I make no promises he'll do what I say."

**The music returns as Hiccup's prosthetic is shown locking into the new pedal, opening the bright red tailfin with a white horned skull on it.**

**Hiccup glances at it, now in his full flying harness, before looking at Astrid, who is on her Nadder right beside him. He looks down at his dragon and smiles. "You're ready?"**

**Toothless croons and shakes his head in confirmation.**

**Hiccup looks up in wonder, looking at the Vikings and dragons living together, as his voice returns to narrate the end.**

**"****_This, is Berk._****"**

The Vikings smiled, realizing this was the end. It ended pretty well, if one asked them.

**"****_It snows nine months of the year, and hails the other three._****"**

**Hiccup and Astrid take off as the voiceover continues. While the narrator speaks, Astrid surpasses Hiccup with a cry of joy, and Hiccup chases after her.**

**"****_Any food that grows here is tough and tasteless. The people that grow here are even more so._****"**

A few people stared at the boy, unimpressed. Tough and tasteless, huh? What, did he ever try to take a bite out of someone?

"You're competitive, huh?" Hiccup asked his girl _black space_ friend, raising an eyebrow.

"You have no idea," she replied with a grin.

"Great. Now I know what we'll do for the rest of our childhood – play games to satisfy your endless thirst for victory," he sighed dramatically, making her snort.

**The two zoom past a Viking drinking, who promptly chokes on his drink and glares at them.**

**They fly underneath a stone arc near the sea as Astrid laughs. They fly over the docks, and this time it's Hiccup who cheers loudly, enjoying the flight.**

**"****_The only upsides… are the pets. While some places have ponies or parrots…_****" The two fly under a bridge, where Fishlegs was passing by on his Gronckle. The blonde boy joins them, although he calls for them to wait when he bumps into a wall.**

**"****_We have…_****" The voiceover continues as the twins and Snotlout join them in the flight over Berk. Hiccup looks at the others before he and Toothless race forth and up into the sky, disappearing into the sunlight. "****_Dragons._****"**

The screen darkened, and everyone understood the future was over.

Stoick turned to Khor, and suddenly felt a little sheepish about what he'd shouted earlier. Doubting the doing of the Gods wasn't a wise action on the best of days. When it came to important things like the end of the war, doubting the Gods could result in the complete destruction of his entire village. After all, that was how the Scourge of Odin was said to have appeared. Someone disrespected the Gods, and Odin sent a terrible disease to wipe out their village and many others.

"Uh… Khor, I-"

"I'm going to stop you right there, Stoick." Khor finally stopped feigning disinterest and stood up, stretching his sore muscles. He was still a full head shorter than Stoick. "You acted like any parent would've. In fact, I would've been surprised if you _hadn't_. Now, I believe you think it's time to go home, right?"

Stoick was a bit taken aback at how easily his offence was being forgiven, but he wasn't one to complain about miracles. "Yes. We should return home and make preparations. After all, I do wish for my son to avoid such a terrible injury."

"Actually-"

Khor cut off the heir, already knowing what he was going to say. "Actually, Chief Stoick, it's not over yet," he replied, smiling slightly. "I've shown you what the Gods have asked me to, true, but I do have the power and the permission to show you more, if so I wish. And I do. So please return to your seat, because we're going to see small pieces of a farther future, one where what happened now is history. Recent, but history nonetheless."

"How many years into the future will this be?" Astrid asked, secretly eager to see how she grew up. And how Hiccup grew up. What, can't she be curious about her secret crush's future looks? It wasn't like she was setting him any expectation or anything, she was just curious.

"Three to five or six years into the future," replied their host, plopping back down. "Though I may show you something from before than, but I don't think so. Well, get comfortable guys, because the first piece is going to blow your mind…"

**_I'm tired even just by having scrolled down to write the end AN._**

**_So, as you can see this is not the last chapter. Next one will be the last chapter. Now you can go crazy with suggestions on what future to show. Keep in mind that it's unlikely I will do all of them if there are too many. Also, please keep them snippets under 3-5 minutes in length, since it takes a while to read and write from the movie._**

**_Other than that, remember that spoilers aren't allowed (so sorry, but no Valka. I'll edit the wedding scene magically). And that Hiccstrid is more than welcome. Funny or touching scenes are also very welcome (oh shit, I just summed up 60% of all of RTTE!)_**

**_Until next time,_**

**_Khor Evik Vlakhavlakh_**

**_PS: now I think I'm going to die down for a while. Yes, you read correctly, I'm going to die down. See you in my next life._**


	16. Next Chapter

_**Hey guys! I know it's been a looooong time, but I had to update all my other stories and WFM chapters always take a lot to write, both in terms of time and effort. I relatively recently updated DS (relatively as in I'm writing this AN the very day I've updated DarkerShade, but I have no idea how long it'll take for this chapter to follow up) and I've skipped A Rose Too Many, so now it's back into the HTTYD fandom! (My favourite!)**_

_**IMPORTANT!**_

_**Before you leave, I'd like to ask a little favour from you guys and girls and everything in-between (and outside of these labels, but this is getting long). There is an author called Eikntt here on FFN. She wrote the story "Watching Race To The Edge", which is like, incredible. The characters are mostly on-point (at least the ones we get to see in-depth in the show) and their interactions look like they were taken out of a RTTE episode themselves.**_

_**This author has clearly put a lot of effort into that story and I'd like you guys and girls and ^see above^ to try and check out her story. You don't have to like it, just give it a try. She's a relatively new author and I know it's hard to 'get off the ground', even if you write good stories.**_

_**Of course, this goes for all good-but-new authors… it's just that I don't browse around a lot and I only know about Eikntt.**_

_**So please, just give her "Watching Race To The Edge" a try. It's on my watchlist for a reason. ;-)**_

_**PS for Eikntt herself (if you're reading this) – considering how you write the characters, I'd be interested in chatting with you via PM, but since your PM function is disabled, I can't. I'm not going to force you or anything (not like I could anyway, lol), but I would like to ask you if we could chat, if possible. I would love to hear your views on the characters more in-depth.**_

_**This AN will be included, slightly modified, in the next chapter. I just wanted to let you guys know I'm okay, still alive and writing (I know the saying is alive and kicking, but seriously, who thinks kicking is good for showing you're alive? Writing is much better!). So once next chapter is up, this AN-only chapter will disappear.**_

_**See you all guys and girls and ^see above^ later, hopefully soon!**_

_**Khor E. Vlakhavlakh**_

_**PS – yes, I use my username like an actual name and I own it like a queen.**_


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